[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 34, Number 30 (Monday, July 27, 1998)]
[Pages 1476-1477]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 7110--National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day, 1998

July 24, 1998

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    In 1950, the thoughts of most Americans were far from war. With the 
recent end of World War II and economic recovery in full swing, the 
American people had resumed their everyday lives--going back to school, 
starting new jobs, and raising their families. But the tenor of the 
times changed suddenly and dramatically that summer, as communist North 
Korea crossed the 38th Parallel to invade its free neighbor to the 
south.
    Once again, the world watched to see if the right of self-
determination would prevail in the face of aggression, and once again 
Americans answered the call to serve. A United Nations force--
spearheaded by U.S. air, sea, and ground troops and under a unified 
command headed by the United States--rushed to the support of South 
Korea. In the following 38 months, Inchon, the Chosin Reservoir, the 
Yalu River, and a hundred other locales indelibly etched into the memory 
of our Korean War veterans were added to the long list of places where 
Americans have fought and died for freedom. The fighting was brutal; the 
toll in injuries, lives lost, and those missing in action was heavy. But 
American forces, fighting side by side with South Koreans and our U.N. 
allies, halted communist aggression, preserved the Republic of Korea, 
and won a victory for democratic peoples everywhere.
    Yet, for many years, these important achievements and the 
extraordinary courage and sacrifice of our forces in Korea received 
little recognition. For too long, overshadowed by the broad dimensions 
of World War II and the complexities of the Vietnam War, the Korean 
conflict seemed to be America's forgotten victory.
    But in 1995, with the dedication of the Korean War Veterans Memorial 
in our Nation's capital, America finally paid fitting tribute to those 
brave Americans whose devotion to duty wrote a crucial chapter in 
freedom's history and whose valor and determination in battle laid the 
foundation for our Nation's ultimate triumph in the Cold War. With its 
haunting column of determined troops, the Memorial has the power to 
evoke strong memories within those who served. But it serves another 
enduring purpose: to teach future generations about America's heroes, 
the depth of their sacrifice, and the historic contributions they made 
to the cause of peace and freedom.
    The Congress, by Public Law 104-19 (36 U.S.C. 169m), has designated 
July 27, 1998, as ``National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day'' and has 
authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in 
observance of this day.
    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, do hereby proclaim July 27, 1998, as National Korean 
War Veterans Armistice Day. I call upon all Americans to observe this 
day with appropriate ceremonies and activities that honor and give 
thanks to our distinguished Korean War veterans. I also ask Federal 
departments and agencies, interested groups, organizations, and 
individuals to fly the flag of the United States at half-staff on July 
27, 1998, in memory of the Americans who died as a result of their 
service in Korea.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-fourth 
day of July, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-eight, 
and of the Independence of the

[[Page 1477]]

United States of America the two hundred and twenty-third.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 10:51 a.m., July 27, 
1998]

Note: This proclamation will be published in the Federal Register on 
July 28.