Email   Print   Share By Terri Moon Cronk, American Forces Press Service

Facebook Digg Delicious August 2, 2012 | Across DoD

WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Leon Panetta observed the 59th anniversary of the Korean War Armistice Friday by reminding a gathering of Korean War veterans that America will not permit cuts to the military to again “allow us to lose our edge,” as he said happened on the eve of that conflict more than 60 years ago. Panetta was the keynote speaker at an observance of the armistice that ended the 1950-1953 conflict, held at Arlington National Cemetery, just across the river from Washington, D.C. It was an opportunity to remember the more than 50,000 U.S. service members who lost their lives in the Korean War, and to celebrate the “sheer grit, determination and bravery” of those who fought for a noble cause in a distant land to make the world a safer place, he said. “For three long, bloody years, American troops fought and died in Korea, in difficult conditions, where the country’s mountainous terrain and the unrelenting cold of winter were bitter enemies in themselves,” Panetta said. “It was an uncompromising war, where capture by a vicious enemy often meant summary execution. In Korea, American troops and their allies were always outnumbered by the enemy, awaiting the chilling sound of bugles and horns that would signal another human wave attack.” Panetta said the troops that fought during that Cold War conflict will never forget the battles waged in the country’s mountains and at Massacre Valle, Bloody Ridge, Chosin Reservoir and Pork Chop Hill. Those fights, he said, “became synonymous in our lexicon with the heroic sacrifice and the grim determination of the American fighting man.” The Korean War caught America unprepared, Panetta said, and the mighty military machine that liberated Europe and conquered the Japanese empire had been rapidly demobilized. Only a few years of under-investment had left the United States with a hollow force, he added. “The American Soldiers and Marines initially sent to Korea were poorly equipped, without winter clothing and sleeping bags, with insufficient ammunition and inadequate weapons, including bazookas that weren’t strong enough to stop North Korean tanks.” But those green troops sent to stem the tide of communism soon turned into savvy combat veterans, he said, and what they weren’t taught before their baptism by fire, they quickly learned on the unforgiving battlefield. They soon became a battle-hardened force, Panetta said, that fought from one end of Korea to the other, halting repeated drives to capture the peninsula, and to inflict massive casualties on the enemy in the process. “As we honor our Korean War veterans, we must also remember the more than 7,900 Americans missing in action,” he said. “The Department of Defense is dedicated to resuming the search (to find) the remains of fallen service members missing in action in Korea. We will leave no one behind … until all of our troops come home.” South Korea has grown strong and has become independent, and the Korean War’s moniker as “The Forgotten War” no longer holds true, he added. “Thanks to the service and sacrifice of our veterans six decades ago … South Korea is a trusted ally, an economic power, a democracy and a provider of security in the Asia-Pacific region, and in other parts of the world.” A crucial lesson was learned from the Korean War, Panetta said. “Too many American troops paid a heavy price in Korea because they were not provided the necessary training and the right weapons. They were sent into a tough fight with little preparation ... only a few short years after World War II, dramatic cuts to the force made us lose our edge, even though the world remained a dangerous place. We will not make that mistake again.” Eric Kirk-Cuomo, OSD Public Affairs

A member of the honor guard brings a wreath to Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta during a ceremony at the 59th anniversary of the Korean War Armistice ceremony Friday at the Arlington National Cemetery’s Memorial Amphitheatre. Erin Kirk-Cuomo, OSD Public Affairs

WASHINGTON - Defense Secretary Leon Panetta observed the 59th anniversary of the Korean War Armistice Friday by reminding a gathering of Korean War veterans that America will not permit cuts to the military to again “allow us to lose our edge,” as he said happened on the eve of that conflict more than 60 years ago.

Panetta was the keynote speaker at an observance of the armistice that ended the 1950-1953 conflict, held at Arlington National Cemetery, just across the river from Washington, D.C. It was an opportunity to remember the more than 50,000 U.S. service members who lost their lives in the Korean War, and to celebrate the “sheer grit, determination and bravery” of those who fought for a noble cause in a distant land to make the world a safer place, he said.

“For three long, bloody years, American troops fought and died in Korea, in difficult conditions, where the country’s mountainous terrain and the unrelenting cold of winter were bitter enemies in themselves,” Panetta said.

“It was an uncompromising war, where capture by a vicious enemy often meant summary execution. In Korea, American troops and their allies were always outnumbered by the enemy, awaiting the chilling sound of bugles and horns that would signal another human wave attack.”

Panetta said the troops that fought during that Cold War conflict will never forget the battles waged in the country’s mountains and at Massacre Valle, Bloody Ridge, Chosin Reservoir and Pork Chop Hill.

Those fights, he said, “became synonymous in our lexicon with the heroic sacrifice and the grim determination of the American fighting man.”

The Korean War caught America unprepared, Panetta said, and the mighty military machine that liberated Europe and conquered the Japanese empire had been rapidly demobilized. Only a few years of under-investment had left the United States with a hollow force, he added.

“The American Soldiers and Marines initially sent to Korea were poorly equipped, without winter clothing and sleeping bags, with insufficient ammunition and inadequate weapons, including bazookas that weren’t strong enough to stop North Korean tanks.”

But those green troops sent to stem the tide of communism soon turned into savvy combat veterans, he said, and what they weren’t taught before their baptism by fire, they quickly learned on the unforgiving battlefield. They soon became a battle-hardened force, Panetta said, that fought from one end of Korea to the other, halting repeated drives to capture the peninsula, and to inflict massive casualties on the enemy in the process.

“As we honor our Korean War veterans, we must also remember the more than 7,900 Americans missing in action,” he said. “The Department of Defense is dedicated to resuming the search (to find) the remains of fallen service members missing in action in Korea. We will leave no one behind … until all of our troops come home.”

South Korea has grown strong and has become independent, and the Korean War’s moniker as “The Forgotten War” no longer holds true, he added.

“Thanks to the service and sacrifice of our veterans six decades ago … South Korea is a trusted ally, an economic power, a democracy and a provider of security in the Asia-Pacific region, and in other parts of the world.”

A crucial lesson was learned from the Korean War, Panetta said.

“Too many American troops paid a heavy price in Korea because they were not provided the necessary training and the right weapons. They were sent into a tough fight with little preparation ... only a few short years after World War II, dramatic cuts to the force made us lose our edge, even though the world remained a dangerous place. We will not make that mistake again.”