[News Terms] 'Missing Persons Table' to Be Set Up at Yoon's Luncheon in the US

The 'Missing Man Table' is a table set up inside U.S. military dining facilities or at major memorial events to honor soldiers who are missing in action. Since it is a seat reserved for missing soldiers, it is always left empty.

The composition of the table varies depending on the type and significance of the event, but it is typically decorated with a white tablecloth, a single red rose, a red ribbon, salt and a slice of lemon on a plate, an inverted glass, a candle, and an empty chair.

The white tablecloth symbolizes the pure and sincere heart of the missing comrades who responded without hesitation to the nation's call, and the red rose represents the blood shed by the missing comrades or the hope of their families and friends for their return.

President Yoon Suk-yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The slice of lemon represents the bitter fate of the missing comrades, the salt symbolizes the tears of the families and friends waiting for them, the inverted glass signifies the reality that they can no longer share this table together. When a candle is lit, it symbolizes the hope that remains in people's hearts, and the empty chair represents the place of the comrades who cannot return.

The Presidential Office announced that President Yoon Suk-yeol, who will make a seven-day state visit to the United States starting on the 24th, will hold a gratitude luncheon with over 300 key U.S. and Korean figures during his tour. At this event, a Missing Man Table prepared by the Presidential Office and the U.S. Department of Defense's Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) will be set up.

President Yoon and the First Lady are scheduled to light the candle on the Missing Man Table. The Presidential Office explained that this is to convey President Yoon's strong determination to find the veterans who have not yet returned and to comfort the pain of the bereaved families. At the luncheon, President Yoon will also award the Taegeuk Order of Military Merit to three U.S. veterans: retired Army Colonel Ralph Furkett, retired Navy Colonel Elmer Royce Williams, and the late Lieutenant Baldomero Lopez.