[Anchor]
Today (October 1), President Lee Jae-myung referred to an incident in which South Korean service members were injured by a landmine planted by the North Korean military as an "untoward accident." Speaking at an Armed Forces Day ceremony, he offered words of comfort to the troops, but made no mention of North Korea's responsibility. Toward North Korea, he stated that he hopes it will join in restoring trust and resuming dialogue.
Kang Min-u reports.
[Reporter]
In an address marking the 78th Armed Forces Day today, President Lee Jae-myung spoke about the landmine explosion on the western front.
[President Lee Jae-myung: "My heart still aches when I think of our soldiers who were injured in an untoward accident in the Demilitarized Zone not long ago."]
Conveying comfort and gratitude to the troops, he remarked that it makes one reflect once again on how the ordinary daily lives we enjoy rest upon someone else's peril, but he did not directly mention holding North Korea accountable.
Instead, he emphasized that he would patiently untangle the complicated knots in inter-Korean relations.
[President Lee Jae-myung: "I look forward to and urge the North Korean side to now join us on the path toward restoring trust and resuming severed dialogue."]
He also stated that the two Koreas must build trust for peace on the Korean Peninsula, adding that trust can only be built when words and actions align.
[President Lee Jae-myung: "We will consistently pursue practical measures to lower military tensions between the South and the North."]
Without delivering any message of criticism toward North Korea, President Lee placed emphasis on the "consistency" of tension-easing measures, which is also interpreted as indicating that he will not keep options on the table that could heighten inter-Korean tensions, such as resuming loudspeaker broadcasts toward the North.
Marking Armed Forces Day, the Democratic Party staged a picket demonstration strongly condemning what it called North Korea's clear provocation that trampled on the Armistice Agreement, while the People Power Party criticized President Lee for failing to hold North Korea responsible for violating the Armistice Agreement and instead speaking of an "untoward accident."
Meanwhile, during today's Armed Forces Day ceremony, two drones deployed for an anti-aircraft weapons demonstration suddenly crashed, an incident the military explained was caused by weather conditions and other factors.
Reported by Kang Min-u | Video by Jeong Sang-bo and Ha Ryoong | Video Editing by Nam Il
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