![\"South](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/2026-01-07T054221Z_943687774_RC23UIA99RQD_RTRMADP_3_CHINA-SOUTHKOREA-1767770188.jpg\")
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and his wife Kim Hye-kyung arrive at Seoul airbase as they leave for Beijing, in Seongnam, South Korea, on Sunday [Kim Hong-Ji\/Reuters]<\/p>\nSouth Korean President Lee \u200dJae Myung proposes a halt to Pyongyang\u2019s nuclear programme in exchange for \u2018compensation\u2019.<\/p>\n
Published On 7 Jan 20267 Jan 2026<\/p>\n
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South Korean President Lee \u200dJae Myung has said he has asked his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to play a mediation role as his government seeks to improve relations with the North and restart talks over its nuclear programme.<\/p>\n
Speaking in Shanghai on Wednesday, at the end of a four-day state visit to China, Lee proposed a freeze in Pyongyang\u2019s nuclear programme in exchange for \u201ccompensation or some form of return\u201d.<\/p>\n
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\u201cJust stopping at the current level \u2013 no additional production of nuclear weapons, no transfer of nuclear materials abroad, and no further development of ICBMs \u2013 would already be a gain,\u201d Lee told journalists following meetings with top Chinese officials, including his second meeting with Xi in two months.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf that stage is achieved, then in the medium term we can move toward gradual reduction,\u201d Lee added. \u201cIn the long term, we must not give up the goal of a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula.\u201d<\/p>\n
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and his wife Kim Hye-kyung arrive at Seoul airbase as they leave for Beijing, in Seongnam, South Korea, on Sunday [Kim Hong-Ji\/Reuters]<\/p>\n
Lee was speaking to reporters on the final day of his trip, which was the first state visit by a South Korean leader to China in six years.<\/p>\n
The visit aimed to reset relations<\/a> between the countries following a rocky period in recent years due to a dispute over the deployment in South Korea of a United States missile defence system in \u20602017.<\/p>\n Lee told reporters that much progress had been made in restoring trust and that he had told Xi he would \u201clike China to play a mediating role on issues related to the Korean Peninsula, including North Korea\u2019s nuclear programme\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cAll our channels are completely blocked,\u201d Lee said. \u201cWe hope China can serve as \u2026 a mediator for peace.\u201d<\/p>\n Xi had urged Seoul to show \u201cpatience\u201d in its dealings with Pyongyang, given how fraught ties between the two Koreas have become, Lee added.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd they\u2019re right. For quite a long period, we carried out military actions that North Korea would have perceived as threatening,\u201d Lee said.<\/p>\n South Korea\u2019s ousted former President Yoon Suk-yeol has been indicted<\/a> for allegedly trying to provoke military aggression from North Korea in a bid to help him consolidate power.<\/p>\n