Remains of Chinese war dead put on coffins [Pool picture]
A plane carrying the remains of 36 Chinese soldiers killed during the Korean War left South Korea for a final burial at their homeland.
The remains had been excavated from the Korean War battlefields last year. They will be buried at a state cemetery in China's northeastern city of Shenyang.
They were flown back to China after a ceremony attended by South Korean and Chinese officials at Incheon airport west of Seoul.
South Korea has repatriated 505 sets of the remains, including 437 in 2014, and 68 in 2015 since President Park Geun-hye offered to return them as a goodwill gesture to enhance relations between the two countries.
China fought alongside North Korea in the 1950-53 conflict. The remains of Chinese and North Korean soldiers have been buried together in a special cemetery plot in the border town of Paju.
More than 700 North Korean soldiers are housed at the Paju cemetery, but Pyongyang has ignored Seoul's offer to return them.
South Korea has stepped up the excavation of Chinese soldiers killed on the southern side of the heavily armed border with North Korea.
Aju News Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
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