South Korea and the United States began a joint excavation project Monday to recover the remains of U.S. soldiers who perished during the 1950-53 Korean War, Seoul's defense ministry said.
The project between the ministry's excavation team and the U.S. Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) is set to take place across the country, including the central city of Sangju, 157 kilometers south of Seoul, through April 29, according to the ministry.
The two sides have made joint efforts every year to find the remains of U.S. soldiers killed during the conflict after signing an agreement to conduct such excavations in 2011.
This year, the DPAA has dispatched 11 of its personnel and the joint team will investigate an area in the border county of Yanggu, 113 km northeast of Seoul, where the ministry's officials discovered a suspected U.S. military aircraft wreckage last September.
They will also visit former battle sites in Boryeong, 140 km south of the capital, where a U.S. paratrooper unit conducted operations.
Meanwhile, the two sides also plan to conduct an underwater search near beaches in the coastal cities of Busan and Gangneung in September to find the remains of U.S. pilots whose aircraft crashed in the waters.
The latest excavation project comes as the two nations mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of their alliance this year.
Source: Yonhap News Agency