President Yoon Suk Yeol said peace is defended "not with words, but through powerful strength," marking the 22nd anniversary of the nation's victory in the two Koreas' Second Battle of Yeonpyeong in waters near the western maritime border.

In a social media posting on Saturday, Yoon vowed to build a stronger military and a stronger country in return for sacrifices made by the nation's fallen heroes.

Naming the six South Korean naval officers who lost their lives in the 2002 battle, the president said the nation will forever remember noble sacrifices made by the fallen heroes and veterans onboard a South Korean patrol boat that had sunk under water.

The inter-Korean clash took place on June 29, 2002, after two North Korean patrol ships invaded the Northern Limit Line(NLL), the de facto maritime border, and launched a preemptive strike on the South Korean patrol boat.

The NLL was defended through an immediate counteraction by those onboard the vessel.