Lee calls for renewed path to inter-Korean peace

President Lee Jae Myung called for South and North Korea to move away from hostility and confrontation and return to the spirit of the Oct. 4 Inter-Korean Declaration, The Korea Times reported.

The remarks underscored Lee’s stated approach toward North Korea, including his call at the United Nations General Assembly last month for “peaceful coexistence,” according to The Korea Times.

The Korea Times reported that Lee’s remarks were read by Vice Unification Minister Kim Nam-jung for the 19th anniversary of the Oct. 4 Inter-Korean Declaration.

Lee called for breaking away from “a vicious cycle of hostility and confrontation to create a virtuous cycle of peace and prosperity,” according to The Korea Times.

The declaration was signed in 2007 by late former President Roh Moo-hyun and late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. Lee described it as a “historic agreement” aimed at building trust between the two Koreas and moving toward a permanent peace system.

“The journey to resolve the Korean Peninsula issue and establish peace will not be easy. But it is clear that is the road we have to walk,” Lee said in remarks read by Kim, according to The Korea Times.

Lee said the promise of the declaration had not been realized. “Unfortunately, as the promise for peace and prosperity was not fulfilled, hostility and confrontation filled that space,” he said, according to The Korea Times.

Lee also reiterated his commitment to “peaceful coexistence” with North Korea, The Korea Times reported.