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| ▲ This file photo, taken Dec. 29, 2025, shows Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul. (Yonhap) |
Cheong Wa Dae-N Korea
Cheong Wa Dae says insulting rhetoric by N. Korea not helpful for peace on Korean Peninsula
By Yi Wonju
SEOUL, April 8 (Yonhap) -- Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday that insulting rhetoric by North Korea would not be helpful for making efforts to achieve peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, a day after a senior Pyongyang official decried an expression of regret by President Lee Jae Myung over drone flights by individuals into the North.
In a rare message to North Korea, Lee had expressed regret to the North over the drone incident on Monday. On the same day, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Kim Yo-jong, called Lee's expression of regret a "wise" act.
With North Korea responding to Lee's voicing of regret in an apparent positive note, some officials in South Korea had called the message by Kim's sister meaningful progress in frosty ties between Seoul and Pyongyang.
However, Jang Kum-chol, North Korea's first vice foreign minister, said Tuesday that the statement by Kim Yo-jong should be seen as a clear warning to South Korea and dismissed Seoul's interpretation of the statement as a "wishful interpretation."
"Criticism and insults do not contribute to bringing peace and stability to the Korean Peninsula," Cheong Wa Dae said. "The government will continue its efforts toward peaceful coexistence on the Korean Peninsula based on mutual respect and we hope the North responds accordingly."
Jang reaffirmed that South Korea is the North's "most hostile state," citing South Korea's participation in U.N. resolutions condemning North Korean human rights violations.
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