South Korean President Lee Jae-myung told the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday that the 80-year history of the Republic of Korea was proof that the United Nations can bring positive change to the world.
“It is no exaggeration to say that the Republic of Korea’s history, dotted with challenges and responses, is the history of the United Nations, which has constantly confronted enormous challenges facing humanity,” he said.
“Even a soft coup could not break the people of the Republic of Korea’s strong will desiring democracy and peace,” he said, alluding to the attempt by his predecessor Yoon Suk-yeol to impose martial law in December 2024. Yoon was impeached and removed from office, paving the way for Lee’s election in June.
“The revolution of light that the people of Korea achieved against the darkness of the insurrection last winter was a historic moment that demonstrated the brilliant achievement of the U.N. spirit,” Lee said.
Lee said that “extreme hunger,” “armed conflicts around the world, including in Ukraine and the Middle East,” and the “climate crisis” were problems that could only be solved through the “wisdom” of the United Nations.
“When all the countries experiencing the same problems gather here at the United Nations and continue multilateral cooperation, putting their heads together, we will all be able to move toward a bright future of peace and prosperity,” he said.
Much of Lee’s speech continued in that aspirational vein, praising multilateral cooperation and democracy as the solution to all problems. He named dozens of international organizations South Korea has joined and programs it has contributed to, saying he hoped other nations might follow South Korea’s path in growing from an “aid-recipient country” to an “aid-donor country,” a threshold it crossed in 2009.
Lee warned that “threats to peace” go beyond “physical elements,” pointing to artificial intelligence (A.I.) as a force that can easily be twisted into a weapon for cyberattacks and information warfare.
“If we passively let ourselves be dragged along by the changes of the A.I. era, we will meet a dystopia of deepening polarization and inequality, unable to shake off the dark shadows of human rights abuses caused by the misuse of technology,” he said.
“However, if we proactively respond to these changes, we can use the productivity of A.I. as a driving force to build a foundation for innovation and prosperity, and create a useful base for strengthening direct democracy,” he added.
“A.I.-driven technological innovations will be an important new tool for solving global challenges, like the climate crisis,” he said.
Lee said he hoped to build better relations with North Korea during his administration, even though the Communist tyranny next door has said it has no interest in talking to him. He promised to pursue denuclearization, even though North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un has explicitly ruled out reductions in his nuclear arsenal. Lee recently said he would regard a freeze on new atomic weapons construction by North Korea as great progress.
One concrete step Lee said he was prepared to take was offering his government’s support for North Korea to normalize relations with other countries, including the United States.
“Democratic Korea will begin a new journey toward peaceful coexistence and shared growth on the Korean peninsula. The first step will be to restore broken inter-Korean trust and shift to a stance of mutual respect,” he said.
“The government of the Republic of Korea clearly reaffirms that it respects the North Korean system, that it will not pursue any form of unification by absorption, and that it has no intention of engaging in hostile acts,” he declared.
Lee said this was why his administration has suspended launching pro-democracy leaflets and making loudspeaker broadcasts into North Korea.
“Going forward, the government of the Republic of Korea will consistently seek a path to reduce military tensions and restore inter-Korean trust. The most certain peace is a state where there is no need to fight,” he said.
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