South Korea's Lee says no plans for 'unification by absorption' with North
SEOUL, Aug. 15 (UPI) -- South Korean President Lee Jae Myung pledged to "respect" North Korea's political system and said Seoul would not seek unilateral reunification in a speech to mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Korean Peninsula on Friday.
"We affirm our respect for the North's current system, aver that we will not pursue any form of unification by absorption and assert that we have no intention of engaging in hostile acts," Lee said in a ceremony at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul.
Liberation Day commemorates the end of Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rule of Korea. The holiday is also celebrated in North Korea.
Lee's administration has made efforts to improve relations between the two Koreas since he took office in June. In his speech Friday, he drew a sharp contrast with his predecessor, ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol, who took a hardline approach in dealing with the North.
"Inter-Korean dialogue, which had been maintained through countless ups and downs, was completely halted during the previous administration," Lee said. "Going forward, our government will take consistent measures to substantially reduce tensions and restore trust."
Lee said he would take "proactive and gradual steps" to restore the 2018 inter-Korean military pact that was suspended amid tensions between Seoul and Pyongyang during the Yoon administration in 2024.
The pact established buffer zones along the border and included measures such as the removal of some guard posts in the DMZ and the banning of live-fire exercises in certain areas.
Seoul has already made conciliatory gestures such as removing its propaganda loudspeakers from border areas and calling on activists to stop floating balloons carrying anti-Pyongyang leaflets into the North.
The South's military reported that North Korea began dismantling its own speakers, but Pyongyang denied the claim on Thursday.
Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, called the military's assessment "unfounded" and rejected overtures from Seoul as a "pipedream."
In his speech, Lee said the 80th anniversary was "an opportune time to end the era of confrontation and hostility and jointly usher in a new era of peaceful coexistence and shared growth on the Korean Peninsula."
"I hope that North Korea will reciprocate our efforts to restore trust and revive dialogue," he added.
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