South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has called for renewed talks with North Korea aimed at establishing peaceful coexistence and replacing the Korean Peninsula’s decades-old armistice with a formal peace regime.
Speaking on Saturday during a speech marking the anniversary of Korea’s liberation from Japanese colonial rule, Lee urged Seoul and Pyongyang to sit down for dialogue and work toward preventing another conflict, Reuters reported.
He said South Korea would pursue measures to reduce tensions and establish safeguards designed to prevent military escalation.
Lee also called for talks involving North Korea and other concerned parties to formally end the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty.
The South Korean president said negotiations could also examine practical measures to limit North Korea’s nuclear capabilities while building mechanisms to manage tensions on the peninsula.
Lee’s proposal builds on his earlier pledge to respect North Korea’s political system and pursue peaceful coexistence rather than reunification by force.
However, relations between the two Koreas remain deeply strained.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has abandoned Pyongyang’s longstanding reunification policy and described South Korea as its “most hostile” state. North Korea has also strengthened its military defences along the border.
Pyongyang has rejected Lee’s attempts at engagement, while criticizing South Korea’s plans for nuclear-powered submarines and condemning joint US-South Korean military exercises as provocative.
Lee’s call comes as diplomatic efforts to reduce tensions on the Korean Peninsula face major obstacles, with North Korea continuing to expand its nuclear and missile capabilities and maintaining a hardline stance toward Seoul.
The South Korean president also addressed relations with Japan, saying Seoul should confront historical issues while keeping the door open to future cooperation.
Lee said he hoped South Korea and Japan could begin a new “60 years of peace and prosperity” as close neighbours.