Lee urges Trump-Kim talks to resume through ‘political decision’ ahead of UN General Assembly

NEW YORK — President Lee Jae Myung called for "a political decision" to be made at the top level as he urged the resumption of dialogue between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in an interview published Monday, ahead of his United Nations General Assembly address in New York.  

“The two leaders should build trust and work together to identify a common ground, face-to-face,” Lee said in an interview with The Associated Press released Monday, as he kicked off a weeklong visit to the United States and Mexico.

Lee has pushed for the resumption of talks between Washington and Pyongyang and called Trump’s recent overtures to Kim "a deliberate step to send a clear message that the United States has no hostile intent toward North Korea."

In recent weeks, Trump has called for scaling down combined military drills between Seoul and Washington, citing his good relations with Kim.  

Lee told AP that both South Korea and the United States "remain open to engaging in dialogue with North Korea without preconditions."

During his address to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Lee said he would pursue "a phased and pragmatic solution to the North Korean nuclear issue" and build on his vision for promoting peace on the Korean Peninsula.

Lee also called on the United States to ease its sanctions against North Korea in return for Pyongyang freezing its nuclear weapons program, in a separate interview with The New York Times published Monday.

Lee said there is "significant value in a trade-off between sanctions and a halt to the development of additional nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missile [ICBM] technology,” in the interview conducted Friday.  

Lee also warned of the dangers of leaving North Korea's nuclear capabilities unchecked. He said estimates suggest that North Korea is now capable of producing an additional 10 to 20 nuclear weapons each year, and after it has accumulated enough nuclear weapons and missiles to guarantee its survival, it may export them.

Lee, accompanied by first lady Kim Hea Kyung, arrived in New York on Monday afternoon to attend the UN General Assembly on Tuesday. Lee was on a seven-day tour that includes a series of bilateral meetings and an investment summit in New York, and will later take him to Mexico for a state visit and a bilateral summit with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.  

On Monday night, Lee and Kim visited New York’s Koreatown and greeted locals and tourists, the Blue House said.

The presidential couple also toured the streets as Korean Ambassador to the UN Cha Ji-hoon shared the history and development of Koreatown. They viewed shops with Korean signage and looked at various Korean products, such as cosmetics, displayed in the stores.

Lee and Kim later visited Korean restaurant "The Kunjip" for dinner, ordering dishes such as dolsot bibimbap (stone pot mixed rice), napa cabbage soup and modumjeon, or assorted pan-fried savory pancakes.

“The visit to Koreatown, made ahead of the Chuseok holiday, was a meaningful occasion to exchange warm greetings with compatriots who have put down roots and built the Korean community in a foreign land, and to personally witness the stature of Korean culture within the daily life of New York,” deputy presidential spokesperson Ahn Gwi-ryeong said in a statement.

Lee is scheduled to attend the UN General Assembly for a second consecutive year Tuesday to deliver a keynote address, where he plans to outline the direction of UN reform aimed at resolving global issues and present ways for South Korea to contribute. He will also explain a three-part blueprint comprising inclusion, stability and contributions to world peace, for realizing peace and coexistence between the two Koreas.

Trump is also scheduled to speak at the UN this year, though it is unclear if the two leaders will have any interaction.

BY SARAH KIM [[email protected]]