Lee Jae Myung Says Korean Peninsula Peace Remains a Necessary Path

President Lee Jae Myung said South Korea must continue working toward peace on the Korean Peninsula even though resolving inter-Korean tensions will not be easy.

Lee made the appeal in a commemorative address marking the 19th anniversary of the October 4 inter-Korean summit declaration. The message was delivered on his behalf by Vice Unification Minister Kim Nam-jung at an anniversary event held Sunday at Dorasan Station in Paju, Gyeonggi Province.

The president described the 2007 declaration as an agreement between the leaders of South and North Korea intended to strengthen peace. He said its central goals included transforming inter-Korean relations through mutual respect and trust, ending military hostility and moving beyond the armistice system toward a permanent peace arrangement.

Lee acknowledged that the commitments to peace and prosperity made under the declaration had not been fulfilled. He said hostility and confrontation had instead filled the gap, adding that antagonism had even been used as a justification for threatening democracy.

Despite those setbacks, Lee argued that the principles behind the October 4 declaration should guide policy again. He linked the earlier agreement to the peace framework he has recently promoted, which emphasizes inclusive coexistence, stable coexistence without the need for conflict and responsible coexistence that contributes to global peace. Lee characterized that framework as a contemporary expression of the declaration’s original spirit.

The remarks place dialogue and long-term de-escalation at the center of the administration’s approach to inter-Korean affairs. They also underline the difficulty of pursuing that approach when relations remain strained and the commitments of earlier summit agreements have not been carried out.

Lee said the journey to address problems on the peninsula and consolidate peace would be difficult, but maintained that it remained a path the country must take. He called on the public to help establish lasting peace while carrying forward former President Roh Moo-hyun’s commitment to peace and prosperity on the peninsula.

The October 4 declaration followed the 2007 inter-Korean summit and set out broad commitments on political trust, military tension reduction and cooperation. Sunday’s anniversary message framed those commitments not as completed achievements, but as unfinished work that the government believes remains relevant to current policy.