South Korea’s Lee pushes to end 73-year Korean War limbo
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has renewed his push to replace the 1953 armistice with a permanent peace system, saying his country cannot keep pouring its strength into confrontation with North Korea.
Lee made the pledge on Wednesday at a gathering of the American branch of the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council in Incheon, according to The Korea Times.
«We must change the unfortunate reality in which North and South Korea are using their strength only to confront each other,» Lee said, as quoted by the presidential office. He called for the armistice to give way to a system built on co-operation and prosperity.
Why South Korea’s peace plea matters
The Korean War has ended in 1953 with an armistice rather than a peace treaty, leaving the two Koreas technically at war more than seven decades later.
Lee added that Seoul should create the conditions for renewed US–North Korea dialogue. He also linked greater South Korean responsibility for peace to the planned transfer of wartime operational control from the US, which he wants completed before his term ends in 2030.
The move comes after North Korea shut communication channels, rejected Seoul’s overtures and formally recast the South as a hostile state rather than a partner for eventual reunification.
Read more: North Korea fires ballistic missile before US–South Korea drills.
Lee’s strategy depends heavily on US President Donald Trump finding a way back into talks with Kim Jong Un. South Korean intelligence officials have identified possible signs that Washington and Pyongyang are considering renewed dialogue, although no direct contact has been confirmed.
Kim has previously signalled that he could talk to Trump again, but only if Washington drops its demand that North Korea surrender its nuclear arsenal.
