I recently came across this article which has given me more insight into this important issue: https://thediplomat.com/2022/05/k-dramas-resurrect-long-buried-memories-in-vietnam/

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    Thank you for sharing this. A very important issue to highlight indeed. It actually reminds me a bit of the conversations we recently had about the white saviourist elements of Descendants of the Sun. Korean dramas are a significant source of soft power, and it’s essentially being used as propaganda to whitewash occupation and war crimes.

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      @ladynightshade: Always a pleasure to chat to you even when the topic is heavy and difficult.
      For sure re your point. To my shame, I hadn’t fully understood the extent of the American aid to SK which was tied to its support for the war against Vietnam. The revisionism of this period in history by the Sk’n Government is shameful to say the least.

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        @dncingemma: Well, that’s the caveat of being a regional US ally. You get the economic benefits and exponential GDP growth, but you also have to support and participate in American imperialist brutality. And this wasn’t only in Vietnam – South Korea also actively participated in the Iraq War, which we now know was based on complete lies and took the lives of over a million Iraqis. I’m not sure if the South Korean military was involved in any other American-centric conflicts in the region, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they were.

        All this to say, quite the topic to tackle in a blog about tv shows, isn’t it?

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