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By Kim Eun-jung
HONOLULU, July 8 (Yonhap) -- President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived in Hawaii on Monday to kick off his trip to the United States focused on bolstering South Korea's security against North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats.
Yoon will stay in Honolulu for two days ahead of his visit to Washington, D.C., to attend a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit Wednesday and Thursday.
President Yoon Suk Yeol (L) and first lady Kim Keon Hee arrive at Hickam Air Force Base in Honolulu, Hawaii, on July 9, 2024. (Yonhap)
Upon arrival, Yoon and first lady Kim Keon Hee visited the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific and laid wreaths in honor of veterans who fought in the 1950-53 Korean War.
Adm. Samuel Paparo, commander of the Indo-Pacific Command, and Gen. Paul LaCamera, commander of the U.S. Forces Korea, attended the wreath-laying ceremony.
President Yoon Suk Yeol (R) and first lady Kim Keon Hee lay wreaths at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii, on July 9, 2024, to honor veterans who fought in the 1950-53 Korean War. (Yonhap)
On Tuesday, Yoon will visit the Indo-Pacific Command to receive a security briefing from U.S. military commanders.
Currently, the Rim of the Pacific Exercise (RIMPAC), a U.S.-led joint maritime exercise, is under way in Hawaii. The drills, involving South Korea and 28 other countries, began June 26 and will continue until Aug. 29.
Yoon's visit marks the first by a South Korean president since the command was renamed from the Pacific Command to the Indo-Pacific Command in 2018.
The U.S. military's largest combatant command oversees the U.S. Forces Korea, which maintains about 28,500 troops in South Korea as a deterrent against North Korea.
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