The People Power Party (PPP) launched an offensive against President Lee Jae-myung's proposal during his Liberation Day congratulatory speech for multilateral discussions to end the Korean War, calling it a "pathetic plea for peace that unilaterally disarms us."

In a commentary released today (August 16), Senior Spokesperson Choi Bo-yun criticized, "President Lee's Liberation Day speech demonstrated the pinnacle of the administration's security incompetence," adding, "Even as North Korea advances its nuclear capabilities, the president threw out hollow proposals toward North Korea such as 'end-of-war discussions among parties involved' and 'three-way peaceful coexistence.'"

She continued, "To make matters worse, the Ministry of Unification has stepped up to replace expressions such as 'North Korea is our main enemy,'" asking, "How much longer must we witness this 'pathetic begging' where we unilaterally disarm ourselves while forgetting strict security principles?"

Senior Spokesperson Choi pointed out regarding Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-back's remarks on the establishment of the United Nations Command's "Guard and Armistice Enforcement Brigade"—where he first claimed it was "agreed with the U.S. not to be pursued" before flipping to "closely consulting"—that "the irresponsible words and actions of the Minister of National Defense, who constantly contradicts himself and brings about confusion on major issues, have already become chronic."

She further urged, "Behind Minister Ahn's misjudgment and excuses lies President Lee's 'reckless impatience' to use the wartime operational control transfer as a political achievement," demanding an immediate halt to irresponsible North Korea policies and the establishment of a firm security posture.

Meanwhile, PPP lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo, a member of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, wrote on Facebook today, "An end of war without denuclearization is effectively 'acknowledging North Korea's nuclear weapons,'" and argued, "There is something more President Lee should have followed up with: South Korea's 'nuclear doctrine that overwhelms North Korea's nuclear weapons and a nuclear armament project with a heightened level of nuclear sharing.'"

He added, "Deterrence comes from fear, not goodwill. Dialogue can only begin within a balance of nuclear power," writing, "The fact that even touching the nuclear button could turn Pyongyang into a sea of fire must be deeply engraved in Kim Jong-un's mind."

He further argued, "What we need is to elevate the level of nuclear sharing to prompt the forward deployment of U.S. nuclear assets, secure rights from the U.S. for uranium enrichment and spent nuclear fuel reprocessing, acquire nuclear-powered submarines, and rebuild the 707th Special Mission Group to restore the capability for Kim Jong-un decapitation operations."

(Photo: Yonhap News)