U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Steel said the alliance between the two countries goes beyond an ordinary partnership and is a bond forged in blood.
Steel made the remarks on the 18th at the 26th-1 Korea-U.S. Alliance Conference, held at the Ambassador Seoul Pullman Hotel in Jung-gu, central Seoul. "The Korea-U.S. Mutual Defense Treaty is an unbreakable tie, and the alliance is more than a simple arrangement between governments," she said. The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, the Korea-U.S. Alliance Foundation and the Korean War Veterans Association of the U.S. Forces Korea hold the conference each year to honor the sacrifices of war veterans and mark the value of the alliance.
Steel said the alliance continues to advance, citing the joint fact sheet produced by last October's summit between the two countries' leaders. "The two countries are strengthening security cooperation while modernizing the alliance, and the joint fact sheet lays out practical ways for both sides to work toward a stronger and more prosperous future," she said. She added that the two countries are stepping up cooperation in shipbuilding, technology and regional security while accelerating trade and investment.
Steel, a Korean American, also pointed to her own background as evidence that the two countries share common values. "I was born in Seoul, and now I have come here representing the U.S. government," she said. "I have seen how integrity, the power of education, faith and opportunity connect people across the Pacific." She closed her speech by saying in Korean, "We go together."
Joseph Hilbert, chief of staff of the Combined Forces Command, who attended in place of Commander Xavier Brunson, said the alliance is a global strategic partnership that extends beyond a security arrangement limited to the Korean Peninsula. "In an international environment of deepening conflict, such a partnership matters more than ever," he said. Citing South Korea's shipbuilding and naval vessel maintenance, repair and overhaul, or MRO, capabilities as well as its skilled workforce, he said governments, industry and civil society could join forces beyond the two militaries to strengthen deterrence.
