President Lee: "We Will Turn Swords into Plowshares and Do Everything to Build Peace Beyond the Armistice"

  [Financial News, Rome, Italy = Reporter Choi Jong-geun]President Lee Jae Myung, who is on a state visit to Italy, said on the 14th local time that he would "do everything possible to move beyond the armistice and build a sustainable peace regime" between the two Koreas. He also stressed, "I hope we can create a virtuous cycle in which peace on the Korean Peninsula leads to world peace, and global solidarity in turn strengthens peace on the Korean Peninsula."
In a commemorative address at the Special Mass for Peace and Solidarity, presided over by Cardinal Lazarus You Heung-sik, the first Korean to be appointed minister of the Dicastery for the Clergy, at the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls in Rome, President Lee said, "North and South, which once spoke of peace and prosperity together, have returned to an era of division and confrontation. The channels of communication that connected the two Koreas have been closed, and distrust and tension remain." He added, however, that "the people of the Republic of Korea have never lost faith in peace and democracy despite countless trials and hardships, and have repeatedly overcome them."
President Lee said, "Twenty-six years ago, on June 15, the South and the North sat down together for the first time since the division and issued the June 15 North-South Joint Declaration. It was a historic turning point that showed the world the possibility of dialogue and cooperation beyond long-standing hostility and tension." He added, "Since then, reunions of separated families, humanitarian cooperation, exchanges, and visits have continued, opening a new door of hope for peace on the Korean Peninsula. I am still convinced that the spark of that hope is alive."


President Lee said, "Today, the world is facing deeper conflict and uncertainty than ever before. The guns of war in Ukraine have not fallen silent, and new clashes continue in the Middle East." He added, "The foundations of cooperation and coexistence are being shaken, and the shadows of division and confrontation are deepening across the international community. The Korean Peninsula is by no means free from this reality."
He went on to say, "Since taking office last year, the ROK government has pursued preemptive measures to ease tensions, including suspending leaflet campaigns and loudspeaker broadcasts toward North Korea. We have also made it clear that we do not seek absorption unification or one-sided system competition." He emphasized, "We will continue efforts to prevent accidental clashes between the two Koreas and restore military trust."
He also urged, "I ask you to pray together so that the words of Isaiah 2:4 — 'They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks' — may be realized across the entire nation."
President Lee said, "For many years, the international community has hoped for peace and reconciliation on the Korean Peninsula, and the ROK has steadily worked to meet those expectations and support. On behalf of the people of the Republic of Korea, I would like to express our sincere gratitude to the Holy See for its unwavering interest and support." He added, "At a time when conflict and uncertainty are weighing heavily on the world, the Republic of Korea now wants to deliver a message of hope."
As President Lee delivered a message of peace for the Korean Peninsula at the Holy See on the day, Cheong Wa Dae reaffirmed that it would continue both a principled response and a policy of peaceful coexistence after North Korea reacted angrily to a joint statement with the European Union (EU).
A Cheong Wa Dae official said, "The government will consistently pursue a policy of peaceful coexistence on the Korean Peninsula with a long-term perspective." The official added, "The EU also supports our government's policy aimed at easing tensions and establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula."

Earlier, after summit talks with António Costa, President of the European Council, and Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, on the 10th, President Lee adopted a joint statement that said, "We condemn third-party support that enables Russia's continued war of aggression against Ukraine, especially support from North Korea. We strongly condemn the illegal military cooperation between Russia and North Korea."
In response, a senior Cheong Wa Dae official whom reporters met at a press center in Rome explained, "Some may say this is inconsistent with an approach aimed at easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, but that is not the case." He said, "We are pursuing two simultaneous goals: stating and upholding principles, pursuing denuclearization, and also pursuing peace-building and tension reduction. All of that is reflected."
North Korea had earlier protested the joint statement through a declaration issued in the name of a spokesperson for the 10th Bureau of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, calling it "a clear violation of our state's sovereignty and a grave hostile act."

cjk@fnnews.com Choi Jong-geun Reporter