SEOUL
\nSouth Korean President Lee Jae Myung called on Sunday for dialogue with North Korea to resume, after Pyongyang last week shunned the prospect of diplomacy with its neighbor.
\nSince taking office in June, a dovish Lee has sought to mend ties with the nuclear-armed North, which reaffirmed its anti-Seoul approach during a party meeting last week.
\n\u201cAs my administration has repeatedly made clear, we respect the North\u2019s system and will neither engage in any type of hostile acts, nor pursue any form of unification by absorption,\u201d Lee said in a speech marking the anniversary of a historical campaign against Japan\u2019s colonial rule.
\n\u201cWe will also continue our efforts to resume dialogue with the North,\u201d he said.
\nNorth Korean leader Kim Jong Un last week dashed hopes of a diplomatic thaw with Seoul, describing its overtures as \u201cclumsy, deceptive farce and a poor work.\u201d
\nSpeaking at the party congress in Pyongyang, Kim said North Korea has \u201cabsolutely no business dealing with South Korea, its most hostile entity, and will permanently exclude South Korea from the category of compatriots.\u201d
\nBut he also said the North could \u201cget along well\u201d with the United States if Washington acknowledges its nuclear status.
\nSpeculation has mounted over whether US President Donald Trump will seek a meeting with Kim during planned travels to China.
\nLast year, Trump said he was \u201c100 percent\u201d open to a meeting.
\nPrevious Trump-Kim summits during the US president\u2019s first term fell apart after the pair failed to agree over sanctions relief \u2014 and what nuclear concessions North Korea might make in return.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
SEOUL South Korean President Lee Jae Myung called on Sunday for dialogue with North Korea to resume, after Pyongyang last week shunned the prospect of diplomacy with its neighbor. Since taking office in June, a dovish Lee has sought to mend ties with the nuclear-armed North, which reaffirmed its anti-Seoul approach during a party meeting […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":534285,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-534244","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n