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South Korean President Lee Jae Myung proposed talks with North Korea to formally end the Korean War, as Pyongyang deepens ties with Russia while asserting its status as an “irreversible” nuclear state.
The two Koreas remain technically at war because their 1950-53 conflict, triggered by a North Korean attack, ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty.
Lee proposed in a speech marking the anniversary of Korea’s liberation from Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule.
“Let us put down our intentions to threaten each other and begin discussions to end the long-running war as the directly involved parties,” Lee said.
“Through this, it may also be possible to discuss effective measures to halt the advancement of North Korea’s nuclear capabilities,” he added.
Lee’s proposal came as North Korea this week denounced upcoming annual U.S.-South Korean military drills, warning of stronger deterrence measures.
Pyongyang has also recently bristled over Japan’s gradual military buildup in the Pacific, firing two missiles in as many weeks after Tokyo pledged to strengthen its defense capabilities with a “sense of urgency and crisis.”
North Korea has repeatedly declared itself an “irreversible” nuclear state since a 2019 summit between leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump in Hanoi collapsed over the scope of denuclearization and sanctions relief.
Lee, South Korea’s dovish president, has reversed the stance of his hawkish predecessor since taking power in Seoul in June 2025, offering nuclear-armed Pyongyang talks without preconditions.
In July, South Korea’s unification minister said Seoul had abandoned its campaign prioritizing pressure on the North to dismantle its nuclear weapons, focusing instead on halting the expansion of Pyongyang’s nuclear activities.
North Korea has yet to respond to Lee’s repeated offers and has instead strengthened military ties with Russia.
Analysts say Pyongyang is receiving financial support, food, energy and military technology from Moscow in exchange for supplying troops and munitions for Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Kim is expected to visit Russia later this year, potentially to discuss further weapons supplies to Moscow.
Washington, Seoul’s key security ally, stations about 28,500 troops in South Korea to bolster the country’s defenses against military threats from Pyongyang.
Col. Ryan Donald, spokesperson for the U.S. and South Korean Combined Forces Command, said this week that North Korea’s deployment to the war in Europe had changed the threat his soldiers may face on the Korean Peninsula.
“They’ve taken those lessons they learned there and brought them back to North Korea,” Donald told reporters, referring to the 11-day U.S.-South Korean joint exercises due to begin Monday.
“Our training accounts for that threat,” he added.
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