Lee Jae Myung suggested a "multi-layered security system" to avoid flare-ups along the countries' de-facto border, known as the demilitarised zone (DMZ), and offered to discuss practical ways of halting Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions. North Korea has continually tested ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, which has been perceived in Seoul and nearby Japan as an attempt to intimidate and project power. The conflict between the two occupants of the Korean peninsula has been effectively frozen since an armistice was signed in 1953. However, there have been clashes and tensions along the DMZ in the decades since, along with accusations from both sides of provocations, including dropping balloons carrying rubbish and propaganda. Lee, who became South Korean president in 2025 after his predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached for attempting to declare martial law, has sought to thaw relations with North Korea and its ally China, which had soured under Yoon. "Let us put down our intentions to threaten each other and begin discussions to end the long-running war as the directly involved parties," he said at a ceremony marking Liberation Day, which commemorates the peninsula's liberation from Japanese rule. Lee expressed hope that the two nations "will sit face-to-face for peaceful coexistence and mutual growth", adding this could serve as a forum for discussing "effective ways to halt the advancement of the North's nuclear capabilities". (BBC)