South Korean President Lee Jae-myung has proposed that North Korea begin negotiations on formally ending the Korean War and discuss measures to curb the development of Pyongyang's nuclear program, according to infohub.kz.
He made the remarks during a speech marking the 81st anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japanese colonial rule, Yonhap reported.
"Let us abandon our intentions to threaten each other and begin discussions on ending this protracted war as directly involved parties," Lee said.
According to him, within the framework of a possible dialogue, the sides could discuss "effective ways to halt the development of North Korea's nuclear capabilities."
The Korean Peninsula remains technically in a state of war. The Korean War of 1950-1953 ended with the signing of an armistice agreement, but a peace treaty was never concluded between the parties. Therefore, South and North Korea are still technically at war.
Lee Jae-myung stated his intention to work towards replacing the "unstable armistice system" with a sustainable peace regime. The president called on Seoul and Pyongyang to respect each other's systems and to refrain from unnecessary confrontation. He expressed hope that representatives of the two countries could sit down at the negotiating table for peaceful coexistence and mutual development.
"I will turn the energy of hostility and confrontation into momentum for peaceful coexistence and mutual growth," the South Korean leader said.
Meanwhile, Pyongyang has not yet responded to Seoul's repeated offers of dialogue since Lee Jae-myung took office in June last year. Despite this, South Korean authorities have stated their intention to continue the course towards negotiations.
Earlier, Kursiv reported that South Korea wants to land on the Moon by 2030. And the day before, Lee Jae-myung made an official statement on social media platform X, thanking President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and the National Security Committee of Kazakhstan for their assistance in combating phone scammers. Members of a Korean organized crime group involved in voice phishing had attempted to evade justice by moving through Cambodia and Vietnam, but were discovered and detained in Kazakhstan.