South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has urged North Korea to enter direct negotiations aimed at formally ending the Korean War and addressing Pyongyang’s expanding nuclear capabilities.
Speaking on Saturday during celebrations marking the 81st anniversary of Korea’s liberation from Japanese colonial rule, Lee called on the two sides to abandon mutual threats and open discussions as the parties directly involved in the decades-old conflict. “Let us put aside our intentions to threaten each other and begin discussions to end the long-running war,” he said, adding that negotiations could explore “effective ways to halt the advancement of the North’s nuclear capabilities.”
North and South Korea technically remain at war because the 1950-53 conflict concluded with an armistice rather than a peace treaty. Lee, who took office last year following the impeachment of former president Yoon Suk Yeol, has pursued improved relations with Pyongyang and Beijing after tensions increased under his predecessor.
His latest overture follows an apology to North Korea in April over drone incursions allegedly carried out between September 2025 and January 2026 by three people later indicted by South Korean prosecutors.
Pyongyang has not responded to Lee’s latest proposal, and relations remain deeply strained. In March, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un branded South Korea the “most hostile state” and warned Seoul would “pay the price” for what he described as provocations.
