South Korea on Thursday returned the remains of 109 more Chinese soldiers who died during the 1950-53 Korean War. 

A transfer ceremony was held Thursday morning at the Incheon International Airport, west of the Republic of Korea (ROK) capital of Seoul. A Chinese delegation led by Vice Minister of Veterans Affairs Chang Zhengguo and a South Korean delegation led by Vice Defense Minister Park Jae-min attended the ceremony.

During the ceremony, Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Xing Haiming covered the coffins with China's national flags before they were carried onto a Chinese military airplane. 

Chang said 2021 marked the eighth consecutive year that China and South Korea have jointly carried out the handover of the remains of Chinese People's Volunteers (CPV) martyrs in South Korea, returning the remains of a total of 825 CPV martyrs to their motherland based on humanitarian principles and in the spirit of friendship and practical cooperation. 

He said against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, both sides have made more efforts to realize this year's handover.

The Chinese side appreciates the efforts made by the South Korean side and is ready to deepen friendly cooperation and exchanges between the two countries, promote the protection of the remains of CPV martyrs in South Korea and bring the remains of more CPV martyrs back to their motherland as soon as possible, Chang said. 

The remains of 109 Chinese soldiers and 1,226 related relics were excavated from six regions in South Korea between 2019 and 2020, according to the South Korean defense ministry.

In 2014, South Korea agreed with China to repatriate the remains of fallen Chinese soldiers according to international law and humanitarian spirit, the ministry said.

From 2014 to 2020, South Korea returned the remains of 716 CPV martyrs killed in the Korean War: 437 in 2014, 68 in 2015, 36 in 2016, 28 in 2017, 20 in 2018, 10 in 2019 and 117 in 2020. 

The CPV fought with the People's Army of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in the Korean War against the ROK army and U.S.-led UN forces.  

Almost 200,000 CPV soldiers were confirmed killed in the war, with most buried on the Korean Peninsula.