• Lee Jae Myung puts responsibility on Seoul to create conditions for dialogue with Pyongyang
• US has ‘direct stake’ in Pyongyang’s nuclear, intercontinental ballistic missile programs, Lee says on 100 days in office

ISTANBUL

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said Thursday that North Korea considers the US its “primary threat,” not Seoul, according to the Korea Times.

“For this reason, the North views its relationship with the US as more important than its ties with South Korea,” Lee said at a news conference, marking his first 100 days in office.

He put the responsibility for creating conditions for dialogue with North Korea on Seoul, “even if there is no visible progress.”

Lee was elected in snap presidential polls in June, after his predecessor, Yoon Suk Yeol, was ousted because of his bid to impose martial law last December.

"From North Korea’s perspective, it would be foolish for South Korean officials to expect the North to suddenly soften its stance or greet them with smiles just because the government has changed, halted loudspeaker broadcasts or has taken a few conciliatory steps,” said Lee.

The divided Koreas have seen ties spiral downward under Yoon, who had threatened to eliminate the regime in Pyongyang.

Almost all bilateral pacts, including one to reduce military tensions, were scrapped during the Yoon era.

“If they refuse to smile and we keep responding with anger, it is ultimately South Korea that suffers. This is not about doing North Korea a favor, nor about ideology," said Lee, emphasizing the need for continuous efforts to keep peace and stability.

Soon after Lee was elected with an overwhelming mandate, Seoul has upended Yoon’s hostile policy, including dismantling infrastructure for propaganda broadcasts as well as halting anti-Pyongyang leaflets across the Demilitarized Zone into North Korea.

But Pyongyang has refused to engage with the Lee administration.

“Peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula is not only a grave security matter but also an economic one, as tensions along the demilitarized zone impose tremendous costs. Easing those tensions, even slightly, benefits us,” said Lee.

The South Korean president stressed the importance of coordinating with the US and the need for North Korea-US dialogue, pointing out that Washington “has a direct stake in Pyongyang’s nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile programs.”

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, however, exchanged greetings last week in Beijing with South Korea’s top lawmaker, Woo Won-shik, who told Russian President Vladimir Putin that Seoul wants to “open an era of peace, prosperity” with Pyongyang on the Korean Peninsula.

Seoul is also rejuvenating its unification ministry under Lee’s administration to press forward the opening of a window of dialogue with Pyongyang.

“Right now, talking about reunification might be seen as foolish, but establishing a peace stage beforehand is crucial,” said Lee, highlighting that many countries achieved unification after hundreds of years of separation.

“That is why we must continue to explore dialogue,” he added.​​​​​​​