S. Korea Reaffirms Commitment to Peace Despite N. Korea’s Rejection of Dialogue

Seoul: The presidential office announced on Monday its commitment to taking consistent actions to promote peace on the Korean Peninsula, following North Korea's rejection of President Lee Jae Myung's proposal to resume dialogue.According to Yonhap News Agency, Kim Yo-jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, declared that North Korea is not interested in any policies or proposals from South Korea and will not engage in talks with Seoul. This marks Pyongyang's first official statement on inter-Korean affairs since President Lee's inauguration in early June.A senior presidential official acknowledged the ongoing distrust between the two Koreas, rooted in years of hostility and confrontation. The official emphasized the government's commitment to consistently taking necessary actions to ensure a Korean Peninsula free from hostility and conflict, aligning with the Lee Jae Myung administration's principle of establishing a peaceful state where conflict is unnecessary.Efforts to mend st rained relations with North Korea have been initiated by the Lee administration, including the cessation of anti-Pyongyang loudspeaker broadcasts along the border, urging activists to halt the flight of propaganda balloons to the North, and repatriating North Korean fishermen who had drifted into southern waters.The North's leader, Kim Jong-un, previously characterized inter-Korean relations as those between "two states hostile to each other" in late 2013, expressing a stance against seeking reconciliation and unification with the South.