Lee Jae-myung: "Yoon's 'Bold Initiative' Directly Rejected by North Korea... Expensive Peace Is Better Than a Winning War"

"Must Employ Practical and Creative Strategies"
Written Congratulatory Message Released for 4th Anniversary Discussion on September 19 Military Agreement

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending an emergency party members' meeting held at the National Assembly on the 5th and delivering an opening remark. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, on the 4th anniversary of the September 19 Military Agreement, stated, "We must employ practical and creative strategies that not only protect peace but also create and establish it." He criticized the Yoon Suk-yeol administration's North Korea policy as a 'regression' to pre-2018 approaches, saying, "Expensive peace is better than a victorious war."

In a written congratulatory message released on the 18th, a day before the '4th Anniversary Commemorative Forum on the September 19 Military Agreement' (hosted by the National Assembly Korea Peninsula Peace Forum), Lee said, "Recently, the government presented the 'Bold Initiative,' which is essentially a rehash of the Lee Myung-bak administration's 'Denuclearization and Openness 3000,' but North Korea outright rejected it and even passed the 'Nuclear Force Policy Act' on the 8th."

He also stated, "Due to the short operational depth (in terms of space, time, and resources) characteristic of the Korean Peninsula, war means the mutual destruction of the nation."

Lee explained, "Four years ago today, the South and North adopted the 'September 19 Inter-Korean Military Agreement,' which prohibits all hostile acts across land, sea, and air. Accordingly, some forward guard posts (GPs) near the Military Demarcation Line were withdrawn, and mine removal operations within the Joint Security Area (JSA) in Panmunjom were smoothly completed."

He continued, "The journey toward peace faced a major hurdle with the breakdown of the Hanoi Summit," emphasizing, "Moreover, since the inauguration of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, which advocates a hardline stance and preemptive strike policy toward North Korea, military tensions surrounding the Korean Peninsula have sharply escalated."

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