Seoul: The unification ministry reaffirmed Wednesday that the government will consistently strive to improve inter-Korean ties to end confrontation and seek peace, shortly after North Korea slammed the ongoing South Korea-United States military exercise.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Kim Yo-jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, once again snubbed the Lee Jae Myung administration's reconciliatory overtures in a report earlier in the day, saying that Seoul cannot be a diplomatic partner to Pyongyang. She also said Lee is unfit to change the course of history and denounced the ongoing Ulchi Freedom Shield military drills between South Korea and the U.S.
"The Lee Jae Myung government's proactive measures aimed at (promoting) peace on the Korean Peninsula are not intended to serve unilateral interests or any particular party, but seek stability and prosperity for both South and North Korea," the unification ministry said in a statement. The ministry referred to Lee's conciliatory message in his Liberation Day speech last week, saying that the government will "consistently make efforts to implement them in the future."
In the speech last week, Lee said North Korea's political system will be respected, and unification with North Korea by absorption will be eschewed. He also pledged to restore the now-suspended 2018 inter-Korean military pact designed to ease tensions. "The government will put the era of hostility and confrontation behind and open a new era of peaceful coexistence and mutual growth on the Korean Peninsula," the ministry said, adding that mutual respect from both Koreas will be needed to build peace.