The South Korean navy re-enacted its first battle against North Korea on Friday, to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Korean War.

On June 26, 1950, a South Korean navy patrol ship found and sank an armed North Korean steamer in waters about 19 miles off the Southern port city of Busan. The North Korean ship carried 600 troops that were going to secretly land in the Busan area.

[Admiral Kim Sung-chan, Chief of Staff, South Korean Navy]:
"After a fierce battle we buried all the armed guerrillas at sea, which was a valuable holy war to remain long in South Korean Naval history."

Thirteen South Korean warships—including a helicopter, an escort vessel, a destroyer and two submarines—participated in the re-enactment of the battle in waters off of the Busan Seaport.

[Admiral Kim Sung-chan, Chief of Staff, South Korean Navy]:
"The Cheonan corvette sinking incident enlightened us in the sense that North Korea is a war-mongering group of people, and we are living in a seriously dangerous situation. It's an incident that let our people know we are still at war."

South Korea accused North Korea of firing a torpedo at its Cheonan warship in March.

The two countries have yet to sign a formal peace treaty to end their 1950-53 war.