On June 22, the U.S. Eighth Army in South Korea uploaded an image of the 74th anniversary of the Korean War to the Department of Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS). A revised version of the image was posted on the U.S. Eighth Army’s official Facebook page on June 24.
Currently stationed in South Korea, the U.S. Eighth Army has been found to only mention Russia, not China, as the country that assisted North Korea’s invasion in the image highlighting the 74th anniversary of the Korean War.
According to News1, on June 28, the U.S. Eighth Army created an image commemorating the Korean War and posted it on the Department of Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) on June 22. The image featured images of the South Korean and U.S. militaries during the Korean War, along with the phrase “Remembering the Korean War.” The U.S. Eighth Army produces such graphics yearly to commemorate the Korean War. However, this image was accompanied by a caption stating, “With the support of Soviet Russia, the Korean War was a war in which North Korea invaded South Korea, taking the lives of millions who stood against communism.”
This differs from the image that was uploaded in 2020, which described the Korean War as a conflict between “North Korea, supported by China and the Soviet Union, and South Korea, supported by the U.S.”
It is known that a large number of Chinese troops participated in the Korean War. At the same time, the Soviet Union was not an official belligerent in providing military support to North Korean and Chinese troops, including fighter planes, supplies, and medical services. The image and the message were produced on June 18, just before Russian President Vladimir Putin visited North Korea and announced the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un.
There has been speculation that the U.S. may have attributed more responsibility for the outbreak of the Korean War to Russia, conscious of the excessive military closeness between North Korea and Russia. Particularly, there has been talk that the U.S. deliberately avoided mentioning China at a time when Sino-U.S. and Sino-Korean relations are being restored and managed.
On June 24, the U.S. Eighth Army explained to News1, “The message can change depending on who creates the image each year. It has nothing to do with the current situation,” adding, “A non-final version was uploaded.”
On June 25, the U.S. Eighth Army posted a slightly revised image and a new caption on its official Facebook page, rather than DVIDS.
The post only contained the following:
- Dates of the Korean War
- Role of the Eighth Army after the Armistice
- Respect for the veterans
- Made no mention of China and the Soviet Union
- Countries that assisted North Korea.
According to Voice of America (VOA), the Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Charles Brown, told reporters during an overseas tour on June 24 that “from our perspective, someone from North Korea is pushing in” and that “this could cause more friction between China and Russia.”
Brown added, “It will be interesting to see how these three countries move.”
There is also speculation that if Russia transfers advanced military technology related to nuclear and missiles to North Korea, it could pressure the arms race around the Korean Peninsula. This can allow China to break down the military cooperation between North Korea and Russia.