Lee Proposes Talks With North Korea to Formally End Korean War, Halt Nuclear Program

President Lee Jae Myung on Saturday proposed that South and North Korea open talks aimed at formally ending the Korean War and finding practical ways to curb the advancement of Pyongyang's nuclear program, pledging to pursue a lasting peace regime on the peninsula.

Lee unveiled the proposal in a speech at a ceremony in Seoul marking the 81st anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japanese colonial rule. He urged the two Koreas, as "the directly involved parties," to set aside mutual threats and begin talks to close the chapter on a conflict that has technically never ended. The 1950-53 Korean War concluded only with an armistice, not a peace treaty, leaving the two Koreas in a state of unresolved war for more than seven decades.

As part of any such dialogue, Lee said the two sides could also discuss "effective ways to halt the advancement of the North's nuclear capabilities," tying the long-sought peace treaty to concrete steps on denuclearization rather than treating them as separate tracks.

The president said he hopes the two Koreas will "sit face-to-face for peaceful coexistence and mutual growth," calling for both sides to reduce hostility in their perceptions, norms and systems. He also emphasized the need for a "multilayered security system" to manage tensions and prevent crises, saying his government would take preemptive and consistent measures for peace depending on the security situation.

Lee's overture comes even though North Korea has shown no response to a series of reconciliatory gestures from Seoul since he took office in June last year, including his pledge last Liberation Day to respect the North's political system and rule out any policy of unification by absorption. Despite Pyongyang's silence, Lee said he would work to "turn the energy of hostility and confrontation into momentum for peaceful coexistence," arguing that peace on the peninsula could also help stabilize Northeast Asia and support global efforts toward a world free of nuclear weapons.

In the same speech, Lee touched on South Korea's improving ties with Japan, pointing to a year of active shuttle diplomacy that he said had strengthened trust and expanded cooperation on supply chains, energy and advanced technology, and voiced hope for further collaboration ahead. He also reaffirmed plans to position South Korea as a global leader in advanced technology and to investigate and confiscate assets improperly amassed by collaborators with Japan's colonial administration.

About 3,000 people attended the ceremony at Seoul's Sejong Center, including independence movement veterans and their families, government and ruling party officials, foreign ambassadors and members of the public.