Image President Trump remembers the sacrifices of armed forces on POW/MIA Recognition Day
President Trump remembers the sacrifices of armed forces on POW/MIA Recognition Day

President Trump remembers the sacrifices of armed forces on POW/MIA Recognition Day

September 15, 2017
1 min read

Today marks the 38th POW/MIA Recognition Day, which is observed annually on the third Friday of September. Beginning in 1979, President Jimmy Carter first acknowledged POW/MIA Recognition Day to honor those who were prisoners of war and those who are still missing in action.

POWs lined up in a north Vietnamese prison (Associated Press Archives)

Since 1979, every president has observed the day of remembrance.

In a press release from the White House on Wednesday, President Donald Trump, who once said of Senator John McCain, “He’s not a war hero … He was a war hero because he was captured … I like people who weren’t captured,” reminded the country that, “we do not leave our fellow man or woman behind, and we do not rest until our mission is complete.” The press release added, “For more than three decades, our country has conducted investigation and recovery operations in Southeast Asia with the help of the governments of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. Whether in Southeast Asia, or in South Korea, Europe, the South Pacific, and in all other corners of the globe, we are committed to this most honorable mission of fully accounting for our missing personnel.”

The POW/MIA flag, which is supposed to be flown at half-staff, was created for the National League of Families of American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia in 1970. Other than the Flag of the United States, the POW/MIA flag is the only commemorative flag to be flown over the White House.

Presenting the flag of The National League of Families of American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia. Washington, 1972. (Associated Press file photo)

LIMA CHARLIE NEWS, with James Fox

Lima Charlie provides global news, insight & analysis by military veterans and service members Worldwide.

For up-to-date news, please follow us on twitter at @LimaCharlieNews

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