SEOUL, Sept. 28 (UPI) -- South Korea's president says his military will try for a larger role in global security to repay the help it received in fighting North Korea 50 years ago.
Lee Myun-bak delivered a speech in Seoul on the anniversary of the recapturing of Seoul from North Korea by U.N. allied forces on Sept. 28, 1950. The audience included hundreds of foreign countries' government delegates, war veterans and diplomats, including U.S. Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Ken Shinseki, Yonhap in Seoul reported Tuesday.
After the outbreak of the war on June 25, 1950, 21 countries sent troops as part of a United Nations effort to help the South, and five dispatched medical aid units, Yonhap reported.
"Our troops will actively cooperate with the international community, if necessary, for world security and peace," Lee said.
South Korea has troops in Haiti, Afghanistan, Lebanon and Somalia to help with their reconstruction efforts, Yonhap reported.
Lee called for military reform, saying North Korea's fatal torpedo attack on a South Korean warship in March effectively ended 60 years of cease-fire.
Lee emphasized the military should eradicate the internal problems that prevented the effective response to the attack, and turn the matter into an opportunity for reform.
