Professor Han Hong-gu, who presented a history more interesting than a novel through his witty remarks in Volume 1 of History of the Republic of Korea, has published Volume 2 of History of the Republic of Korea.
Volume 2 deals with key issues that permeate our modern and contemporary history, including the history of the Vietnam War and massacre, rivals Park Chung-hee and Kim Il-sung, intellectuals and universities, and other historical events deeply engraved in our psyches, from an objective and refreshing perspective.

The only income that Korea exclusively enjoyed by sending a large number of troops to the Vietnam War was probably the salaries that the veterans received from the United States in return for their blood.
The fact that the South Korean military received all of its stationing costs, personnel expenses, and equipment from the United States has led to international criticism of the South Korean military as "mercenaries" of the United States.


So why did Park Chung-hee send our young men to Vietnam for such a low price—only 30-40% of the cost of the Philippine or Thai soldiers, when compared to soldiers of the same rank? Beyond the political need to secure American support, from an economic perspective, one could point out that Korea was suffering from a foreign exchange shortage while pursuing its economic development plan.
However, around the time Park Chung-hee decided to dispatch Korean troops to Vietnam, he hastily concluded the normalization of Korea-Japan relations. This is because Park Chung-hee ended up settling the issue of compensation for 36 years of colonial rule with a paltry sum of $300 million in grants and $200 million in loans, without even mentioning the issue of Japanese military sexual slavery (Jangshindae). Can Park Chung-hee, who failed to receive the compensation he should have received from Japan and sent young people to their deaths to make up for it, really be considered a competent president?

---pp.40~41