S. Korea returns remains of 28 martyrs to China despite heightened missile tension

South Korea has returned to China the remains of Chinese soldiers killed in the 1950- 53 Korean War on Wednesday at an airport ceremony in Seoul.

It was the fourth batch returned following a handover agreement between the two countries. Since 2014, the remains of 569 soldiers have been returned by South Korea to China, the Yonghap News Agency reported.

Chinese Civil Affairs Vice Minister Sun Shaocheng and South Korean National Defense Vice Minister Hwang In- moo attended the Wednesday ceremony, Yonghap said.

The remains were unearthed between March to November 2016, and DNA tests confirmed the remains were those of the Chinese People’s Volunteer ( CPV) Army, the report said.

The CPV Army joined the North Korean army in the Korean War against the South Korean army and US- led UN forces.

About 197,653 CPV soldiers have been confirmed killed in the war, with most buried on the Korean Peninsula, the Xinhua News Agency reported in February.

Sun thanked the South Korean defense ministry for its efforts in finding and identifying the remains of Chinese soldiers, and called for deepened friendly cooperation between the two countries.

South Korea said it will continue searching for other possible remains in the spirit of humanism, despite strained ties over the North Korean nuclear issue, the South Korean Ministry of National Defense said.

An agreement between China and South Korea states that the two sides would consult each other every year on the handover of remains of Chinese soldiers found in South Korea.

A handover is usually held before Chinese Tomb-Sweeping Day in early April, according to the Xinhua report in February.