For me, the most important incident in Korean history is the 1945 Trusteeship incident, which has generated the current relationship between the North and the South. As a result of this incident, along with the respective influence of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R) and the United States (U.S.), the two nations have officially become enemies. If the Trusteeship problem was solved at that point, there would have been be a very different flow of our history. As it shaped Korea’s relationship with the North, the nation that has a great influence on Korea, I believe this incident is the most important one in our history.

The Korean War is the biggest war Korea has had so far, and hopefully the biggest one we will ever have. In my opinion, this war not only divided the Korean Peninsula into two, but it also clearly segregated the U.S. and its allies from China and the Soviet Union. During this war many of our brave soldiers were sacrificed, including soldiers from other countries in assistance of Korea. Therefore this is one of the most important wars after World War II, along with the fact that this war is still not over.

In my opinion, the liberation of Korea is the most important historical event. If Korea was not able to become an independent nation at that time, we might still be a colony of Japan and might have lost our identity as Koreans. Liberation is the date we remember for the sacrifice of our warriors back then and to celebrate the reclaiming of our nation, and it is also the day that our ancestors ended 36 years of suffering. By celebrating this day, it would make all of us be more proud of our country as a whole.

Even though the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan may not have initiated a substantial political or economic shift, I still believe this event is historically important. The fact that such an international and large scale event was held in Korea is a proud history for the nation. Not to mention that our soccer team made the semi-finals, the first Asian country to do so. Also, this is one of the few historical events that our generation experienced personally.