(MENAFN) South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has called on the United Nations to support a new initiative aimed at promoting dialogue with North Korea, with the ultimate goal of achieving denuclearization through peaceful engagement, according to reports Wednesday.

During a meeting with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Lee presented his plan centered on “exchange … normalization and denuclearization” as a pathway to end decades of confrontation and usher in stability on the Korean Peninsula.

"President Lee said that peace and security on the Korean Peninsula are directly linked to global peace and security, and requested the U.N.'s support in moving beyond conflict and confrontation toward dialogue and cooperation," his office said in a statement.

The UN leader welcomed the proposal, describing it as a “wise approach,” and pledged the organization’s full backing, while committing to strengthen collaboration with Seoul.

In his speech before the General Assembly, Lee admitted that immediate denuclearization was unrealistic, but stressed South Korea’s determination to break what he called a “vicious cycle” of tensions and hostility with Pyongyang. He also voiced concern about ongoing military frictions between the two Koreas.

For its part, North Korea has maintained that any talks with outside powers would only be possible once its status as a nuclear state is formally recognized.

The Korean Peninsula has remained divided since the Korean War in the 1950s, which concluded with an armistice rather than a peace treaty, leaving both Koreas technically still at war.

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