President Yoon Suk Yeol has promised to protect the lives and safety of the people by maintaining a readiness posture as South Korea marks the 25th anniversary of the First Battle of Yeonpyeong in waters near the western maritime border between the two Koreas.

In a social media posting on Saturday, Yoon said history from 25 years earlier reminds the nation that history and peace can be protected through powerful strength.

He said the inter-Korean clash was sparked on June 15, 1999, after North Korean patrol ships invaded the Northern Limit Line(NLL), the de facto maritime border, and launched a preemptive strike on a South Korean high-speed boat. He added that the South Korean Navy overwhelmingly repelled the North Korean side.

As commander-in-chief, Yoon pledged to build a stronger country along with the nation's heroes and expressed gratitude to all the soldiers for their devotion and hard work for national defense.