National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day, 2011

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Title 3--
The President

Proclamation 8695 of July 26, 2011

National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day, 2011

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

On June 25, 1950, the Korean peninsula erupted in
conflict, becoming the front line of an intensifying
Cold War. For 3 years, our Armed Forces fought to help
keep Korea free, suffering bitter reversals and winning
stunning victories before the Military Armistice
Agreement at Panmunjom secured the border near the 38th
parallel. Together, American service members and allied
forces were part of a generation that, in the words
inscribed at their memorial in Washington, defended ``a
country they never knew and a people they never met.''
Today, we express our unending gratitude to all who
fought and died in pursuit of freedom and democracy for
the Korean peninsula.

Our veterans' courage and sacrifice have enabled the
Republic of Korea to flourish as a strong and
prosperous nation for over half a century. In the
decades following the Armistice, the American and South
Korean people have maintained a warm friendship, and
our alliance is stronger than ever. We remember our
common values and shared suffering during the Korean
War, and we continue to work together towards advancing
the cause of freedom and stability in East Asia and
around the world.

Today, we honor the tens of thousands of service
members who gave their last full measure of devotion to
protect the people of the Republic of Korea. We also
pay tribute to the generations of Americans who have
guarded the border since hostilities concluded. It is
our sacred duty as a grateful Nation to care for all
those who have served, and to provide for our veterans
and their families.

We will never forget that America owes its liberty,
security, and prosperity to the heroic acts of our
service members. We must also remember that their
selfless sacrifices have had a profound impact on the
promotion of freedom across the globe. On National
Korean War Veterans Armistice Day, we recommit to
supporting our venerable warriors and their families,
and we pay our deepest respects to those who laid down
their lives.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the
United States, do hereby proclaim July 27, 2011, as
National Korean War Veterans Armistice Day. I call upon
all Americans to observe this day with appropriate
ceremonies and activities that honor our distinguished
Korean War Veterans.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
twenty-sixth day of July, in the year of our Lord two
thousand eleven, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.