Our gratitude can't be a single-day event

President Lee Jae Myung linked military strength to morale and service conditions at Korea’s 78th Armed Forces Day ceremony at Gyeryongdae on Thursday. The ceremony highlighted Korea’s armed forces, but the article argues that appreciation should continue beyond the event. Korean troops have served in Iraq, Lebanon and South Sudan, while the Cheonghae Unit rescued 21 hostages from the Samho Jewelry in 2011. Sustained civilian respect, accountability and support for service members are presented as part of military strength.

South Korean naval special forces from the Cheonghae Unit rescued all 21 crew members of the Samho Jewelry six days after Somali pirates seized the vessel in January 2011.

Korean troops have carried out reconstruction, medical and humanitarian missions in Iraq and participated in peacekeeping operations in Lebanon and South Sudan.

President Lee emphasized constitutional loyalty, political neutrality and the restoration of public trust in the armed forces.

The article identifies retired Gen. Kang Shin-chul as a former deputy commander of the Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command and the current minister of national defense.

The United States and Britain are presented as examples where recognition of military service extends into schools, communities, businesses, sporting organizations and civilian employment.

Published Oct 6, 2026 8:10 am KST

Updated Oct 6, 2026 2:53 pm KST

Korea's 78th Armed Forces Day ceremony at Gyeryongdae on Thursday has much to appreciate: service members standing in formation, aircraft overhead and displays of the increasingly sophisticated technology on which Korea's defense will depend.

But what stayed with me was something President Lee Jae Myung said.

After discussing artificial intelligence (AI), drones and the transformation of Korea's armed forces, Lee turned to something decidedly less technological: the people who serve. Strong national defense, he argued, does not come from weapons alone. Morale matters. So do the conditions under which people serve and how the country treats their sacrifice.

Reflecting on soldiers recently injured near the demilitarized zone, Lee made an even simpler observation. The ordinary days the rest of us enjoy sometimes rest on risks borne by someone else.

Watching the ceremony, I found myself reconsidering something I had assumed.

I had thought Korea simply did not do enough to recognize its military. That is not quite right. Korea knows how to commemorate its armed forces, and this year's events and the president's remarks demonstrated that.

The harder question is what happens after Armed Forces Day.

Korean service members have done remarkable things on behalf of their country, sometimes far from public view. Thousands served in Iraq, carrying out reconstruction, medical and humanitarian missions. Korean troops have served in peacekeeping operations from Lebanon to South Sudan.

And then there was the Samho Jewelry.

In January 2011, Somali pirates seized the Korean-operated chemical carrier in the Arabian Sea with 21 crew members aboard. Six days later, South Korean naval special forces from the Cheonghae Unit stormed the ship in Operation Dawn of the Gulf of Aden and rescued all 21 hostages.

It was the kind of operation that becomes part of military legend. At the time, it was national news and the troops were rightly praised.

But that is precisely what interests me.

Korea does not necessarily fail to recognize military service when something extraordinary happens. Recognition comes. Presidents speak. Medals are awarded. Television cameras arrive.

Then the moment passes.

Contrast that with the place military service occupies in the civic culture of countries such as the United States and Britain. Neither model should simply be transplanted to Korea, but recognition extends well beyond official ceremonies.

In the United States, Veterans Day involves schools, communities, businesses and sporting organizations. In Britain, remembrance traditions coexist with an Armed Forces Covenant built around an enduring relationship between the armed forces and civilian society. Even employers participate. U.S. companies such as General Motors actively recruit veterans and seek to translate military leadership and experience into civilian careers.

The point is not that Korea needs more discounts, parades or "thank you for your service" slogans. Imported gestures can easily become artificial.

The more interesting question is whether military service retains meaning in civilian life after the uniform comes off.

Korea has understandable reasons for being complicated about this. Conscription means military service is experienced by many men as an obligation rather than a voluntary calling. More importantly, Korea's history of military coups and authoritarian government taught the country an essential democratic lesson: The armed forces must remain under civilian authority and outside politics. The recent martial law crisis reminded Koreans why that principle cannot be taken for granted.

Lee addressed precisely that issue on Armed Forces Day, stressing constitutional loyalty, political neutrality and the restoration of public trust.

But there is no contradiction between those principles and respect for military service.

A democracy can be deeply suspicious of military involvement in politics while being deeply appreciative of the people who defend it. Accountability and appreciation are not opposites.

I was reminded of that distinction recently when I came across an interview with retired Gen. Kang Shin-chul, former deputy commander of the Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command and now minister of national defense. Kang spoke about military strength as something accumulated over time through training, leadership, experience and culture.

That last word stayed with me: culture.

We tend to measure military power through things we can count: troops, aircraft, missiles, defense spending and, increasingly, AI and advanced technology.

But a military does not exist apart from the society that produces it.

Society produces the young conscript standing watch tonight, the non-commissioned officer who makes the military a career, the officer expected to lead in war, the sailor operating thousands of kilometers from home and the family that accepts years of moves and separation.

How those people believe their service is regarded must also matter.

Military appreciation, then, is not merely something a nation owes its service members after they serve. It is part of the culture that shapes who will be willing to serve tomorrow, how they will serve and whether talented people view military service as worthy of pride.

Lee was right to connect morale with military strength.

Watching this year's Armed Forces Day ceremony, I was encouraged by the attention given to the people behind Korea's defense. I would take nothing away from the ceremony or the president's message.

The challenge is making sure that recognition does not end when Armed Forces Day does.

By the next day, the aircraft had landed. The speeches were over. Most uniforms disappeared from television.

But somewhere, a young Korean is standing watch. Korean sailors remain at sea. Korean troops remain deployed abroad. Veterans of missions most of us have forgotten have returned to ordinary civilian lives.

Perhaps the real measure of our relationship with those who serve begins now.

Armed Forces Day gives Korea an opportunity to express its gratitude.

The harder task is carrying it through the rest of the year.

Charles Chang is a Ph.D. candidate in AI convergence and a security resilience consultant based in Seoul, with extensive experience spanning government and corporate leadership.

周四，在鸡龙台举行的韩国第78届建军节纪念仪式上，李在明总统将军队实力与士气和服役条件联系起来。仪式重点展示了韩国军队，但文章认为，对军队的赞赏应该超越仪式本身。韩国军队曾在伊拉克、黎巴嫩和南苏丹服役，清海部队还于2011年从三湖珠宝店解救了21名人质。民众对军人的持续尊重、问责和支持被视为军队实力的重要组成部分。

2011 年 1 月，索马里海盗劫持了“三湖珠宝”号货轮，六天后，韩国海军清海部队的特种部队救出了船上全部 21 名船员。

韩国军队在伊拉克执行过重建、医疗和人道主义任务，并参与了在黎巴嫩和南苏丹的维和行动。

李总统强调宪法忠诚、政治中立以及恢复公众对军队的信任。

文章指出，退役将军姜信哲曾任韩美联合司令部副司令，现任韩国国防部长。

美国和英国被视为对军事服务的认可延伸到学校、社区、企业、体育组织和民用就业领域的典范。

发布于2026年10月6日上午8:10（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年10月6日下午2:53（韩国标准时间）

周四在鸡龙台举行的韩国第78届武装部队日庆典有很多值得欣赏的地方：列队站立的军人、头顶飞过的飞机以及韩国国防所依赖的日益精密的技术展示。

但让我印象最深刻的是李在明总统说过的一句话。

在探讨了人工智能、无人机和韩国军队转型之后，李将军转而谈论了一个与技术截然不同的话题：服役人员。他认为，强大的国防力量并非仅仅依靠武器装备，士气至关重要。服役人员的待遇以及国家如何对待他们的牺牲也同样重要。

李在反思近期在非军事区附近受伤的士兵时，提出了一个更为简单的看法：我们其他人所享受的平凡日子，有时却是建立在他人承担的风险之上的。

观看仪式时，我不禁重新思考起自己之前的一些想法。

我原以为韩国在表彰军队方面做得不够。这种想法并不完全正确。韩国懂得如何纪念其武装部队，今年的活动和总统的讲话就证明了这一点。

更难的问题是，武装部队日之后会发生什么。

韩国军人为国家做出了卓越贡献，其中许多事迹鲜为人知。数千名韩国军人在伊拉克服役，执行重建、医疗和人道主义援助任务。韩国军队也参与了从黎巴嫩到南苏丹的维和行动。

然后还有 Samho 珠宝。

2011年1月，索马里海盗在阿拉伯海劫持了一艘韩国运营的化学品运输船，船上有21名船员。六天后，韩国海军青海部队特种部队在“亚丁湾黎明行动”中强攻该船，解救了全部21名人质。

这是一次足以载入军事史册的行动。当时，这则消息轰动全国，部队也因此受到了应有的赞扬。

但这恰恰是我感兴趣的地方。

韩国并非一定会在发生特殊事件时忽视军人贡献。认可终会到来。总统会发表讲话。勋章会被授予。电视摄像机也会蜂拥而至。

然后，那一刻就过去了。

这与美国和英国等国的公民文化中兵役的地位形成鲜明对比。这两种模式都不应简单地移植到韩国，但对兵役的认可远远超出了官方仪式的范畴。

在美国，退伍军人节的庆祝活动涵盖学校、社区、企业和体育组织。在英国，纪念传统与《武装部队盟约》并存，该盟约旨在维护军队与平民社会之间持久的关系。甚至雇主也积极参与其中。例如，通用汽车等美国公司积极招募退伍军人，并努力将他们的军事领导才能和经验转化为民用职业技能。

重点不在于韩国需要更多的折扣、游行或“感谢您的付出”之类的口号。引进的姿态很容易显得虚假做作。

更有意思的问题是，脱下军装后，军旅生涯在平民生活中是否仍然具有意义。

韩国在这个问题上态度复杂是有其原因的。征兵制意味着对许多男性而言，服兵役是一种义务而非自愿的选择。更重要的是，韩国历史上多次军事政变和威权统治给这个国家上了一堂至关重要的民主课：军队必须置于文官领导之下，并独立于政治之外。最近的戒严危机也让韩国人再次意识到，这一原则并非理所当然。

李将军在武装部队日当天专门谈到了这个问题，强调了宪法忠诚、政治中立和恢复公众信任的重要性。

但这些原则与尊重兵役之间并不矛盾。

民主国家可能对军队干预政治深感怀疑，但同时也对保卫国家的人民充满感激。问责和感激并非对立关系。

最近，我偶然看到一篇对退役将军姜信哲的采访，再次想起了这种区别。姜信哲曾任韩美联合司令部副司令，现任韩国国防部长。他谈到，军事实力是经过训练、领导力、经验和文化积累而成的。

最后一个词一直萦绕在我心头：文化。

我们倾向于通过可量化的事物来衡量军事力量：军队、飞机、导弹、国防开支，以及日益重要的AI和先进技术。

但是，军队并非脱离产生它的社会而存在。

社会造就了今晚站岗的年轻新兵，将军队作为终身职业的士官，被寄予厚望在战争中指挥作战的军官，在离家数千公里之外执行任务的水兵，以及接受多年搬迁和分离的家庭。

人们如何看待自己的服务受到的评价也至关重要。

因此，对军人的敬重不仅仅是一个国家在军人服役结束后应尽的义务。它也是塑造未来谁愿意服役、他们如何服役以及优秀人才是否视服役为值得骄傲的文化的一部分。

李将军将士气与军事实力联系起来的做法是正确的。

观看今年的韩国武装部队日纪念仪式，我深受鼓舞，因为仪式上对韩国国防人员给予了高度重视。我对仪式和总统的讲话都深表赞同。

真正的挑战在于如何确保对军人的认可不会随着武装部队日的结束而终止。

第二天，飞机降落了。演讲结束了。电视上大部分制服都消失了。

但总有一位年轻的韩国人在某处坚守岗位。韩国水兵依然在海上航行。韩国军队依然部署在海外。那些曾参与过我们大多数人早已遗忘的任务的老兵，如今已回归平凡的平民生活。

或许，衡量我们与服务人员之间关系的真正标准，才从现在开始。

韩国的武装部队日给了韩国表达感激之情的机会。

更难的是将这种状态保持到年底。

Charles Chang 是一位人工智能融合方向的博士候选人，也是一位常驻首尔的安全弹性顾问，在政府和企业领导领域拥有丰富的经验。