South Korean President Lee Jae-Myung has expressed readiness to enter into negotiations with North Korea to formally end the Korean War and to establish a multi-layered defense system to protect against future conflicts along the Demilitarized Zone (DZM) separating the two nations.
Lee made the comments while attending a liberation day event. He invited North Korea to join him in working toward establishing a multi-layered security system at the DZM.
“Let us stop making threats to each other and start talking about ending this decades-long war,” Lee stated, adding, “We will talk face-to-face about how we can live together peacefully and grow together.”
The South Korean president appeared willing to engage in discussions regarding the potential means by which South Korea could prevent or slow-down North Korea’s expanding nuclear program.
The Korean War (the actual armed fighting) ended in 1953 when South and North Korea signed an armistice agreement. There has not been a formal peace treaty, so technically, the war is still ongoing and both Koreas are still in a state of war.
For many years there have been periods where tensions between the two countries remained high due to claims of provocation. Both countries have also had disputes over issues such as propaganda and garbage from balloons crossing their borders.
North Korea has yet to respond to Lee’s latest proposal.
2026-08-15 22:06:00
