Meritorious Service Record

The Chinese Nationalist Government (Kuomintang) under Chiang Kai-shek worked closely with the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea realized the benefits of Sino-Korean solidarity and sought to establish a firm anti-Japanese front against imperialist Japan.
In January 1939, Chiang Kai-shek met with both leftist and rightist Korean leaders in Chongqing to establish principles for Korean participation in China’s anti-Japanese operations. He pledged to support Korea’s struggle for independence by fostering the Restoration Movement (復國運動). As part of this initiative, in addition to supporting the existing Korean Volunteer Corps (朝鮮義勇隊), he officially recognized the establishment of the Korean Liberation Army (KLA) in the fall of 1940.
In April 1940, three right-wing Korean independence parties-the Korean Independence Party (韓國獨立黨), the Korean National Party (國民黨), and the Korean Revolutionary Party (朝鮮革命黨)-held a joint representative assembly in Qijiang (綦江). They formally requested that the Chinese authorities recognize the formation of the Korean Liberation Army within Chinese territory. In May 1940, Chiang Kai-shek approved this request, leading to the official founding of the KLA General Command on September 17, 1940, in Chongqing.
Following the outbreak of the Pacific War on December 8, 1941, the United States, the United Kingdom, and China declared war on Japan and formed a military alliance for coordinated operations. Chiang Kai-shek was appointed Supreme Commander of the China Theater and oversaw military support strategies. Concurrently, the Chinese Nationalist Government and the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea finalized key operational plans for the Korean Liberation Army, including a reorganization of its structure.
In 1942, reports surfaced that Japan was conducting large-scale conscription of Korean youth within the Korean Peninsula. Recognizing the urgency of strengthening the Korean independence movement, Chiang Kai-shek instructed Wu Tiecheng (吳鐵城) to collaborate with the Provisional Government in developing countermeasures to carry out anti-Japanese operations within Korea itself.
The South Korean government awarded him the Order of Merit for National Foundation (Republic of Korea Medal) in 1953.