Yonhap News holds photo exhibition to mark 70th anniv. of S. Korea-U.S. alliance

Yonhap News Agency, South Korea’s key newswire, held a special photo exhibition in Seoul on Friday to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the South Korea-United States alliance this year.

The exhibition kicked off at the Sejong Museum of Art inside the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in central Gwanghwamun, running through Oct. 23.

Under the theme of “Together: 70 Years and Beyond,” the exhibition will feature some 150 photos, visual materials and commemorative items encompassing military, economic cooperation and cultural and sports exchanges that illustrate the decadeslong history of the alliance.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and Veterans Minister Park Min-shik attended the opening ceremony, as well as other government officials, including First Vice Foreign Minister Chang Ho-jin and Vice Defense Minister Shin Beom-chul.

“The photos represent our history and symbolically showcase the alliance between South Korea and the United States across various areas, including the military, economy, culture and more,” Han said in his address at the ceremony.

Seong Ghi-hong, CEO and president of Yonhap News Agency, said the exhibition will provide a valuable opportunity to reflect on the “footsteps of the 70 years of alliance” during his opening address.

Joy Sakurai, deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, and Brig. Gen. John Weidner, chief of staff at the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), also attended the exhibition, along with 50 other dignitaries from both countries.

In her congratulatory speech, Sakurai emphasized that the strength of the South Korea-U.S. relationship is because the allies “have gone together all along these past decades.”

“What started as a security alliance has now deepened and broadened over the last seven decades to incorporate economic cooperation, free trade agreements, collaboration in science and technology in any number of academic, civil society, athletic or personal exchanges,” she said.

Weidner also stressed that the alliance “must continue to evolve in the face of new and emerging threats,” noting Pyongyang’s recent amendment of its constitution to enshrine the policy of bolstering its nuclear weapons capabilities.

“Moreover, Kim Jong-un’s recent visit to Russia has raised concerns that North Korea might provide Russia with munitions in exchange for technology,” he said in his address. “This as North Korea has threatened to conduct a third attempt this month to launch a satellite into space.”

He then noted Kim’s labeling of the trilateral cooperation between South Korea, Japan and the U.S. as the “worst actual threat” to the North is a “very telling” sign of the importance of their alliance.

“That speaks to the power of alliances and partnerships, including that provided by the United Nations Command and its 17 Member States from five continents — a truly global representation of like-minded nations in defense of the rules-based international order,” Weidner said.

Yonhap News will also publish a white paper on the development of bilateral relations to mark the alliance anniversary.

The white paper contains facts and information on the two countries’ alliance over the past seven decades, and seeks to present a vision for its future.

The white paper, consisting of seven chapters, comes with 228 photos on the development of bilateral relations from Yonhap, the National Archives of Korea and the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration.

The U.S. Embassy in Seoul participated in the publication as a content production partner.

The South Korea-U.S. alliance, formally established in 1953 as a military alliance under the Mutual Defense Treaty, has developed and expanded into economic cooperation and exchanges in various areas including culture and sports.