Norway's role in the Korean War is largely forgotten at home, but South Korea still remembers it. 

During the war, 683 Norwegians served at NORMASH, the Norwegian Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, and treated more than 90,000 patients. Norway was one of 22 countries that sent military support under the United Nations Command. The command still oversees the 1953 armistice, because the war never formally ended. In 2024, the Norwegian Defence Minister visited the demilitarized zone still dividing the peninsula, and Norwegian staff officers have in recent years participated in military exercises in Korea.

In this episode of The World Stage, NUPI Senior Defence Analyst Per Erik Solli talks with Lieutenant General Scott Winter of the Australian Army, Deputy Commander of the United Nations Command, Korea. They discuss how the command is led today, its bases in Japan and the naval patrols that enforce UN sanctions against North Korea. They also cover what North Korea's growing military cooperation with Russia means for the peninsula. Winter explains why many flags matter for deterrence, even when each contribution is small, and how security partnerships between countries in the Indo-Pacific are evolving.