South Korea's new president Lee Jae-myung vows to resume North Korea talks
發佈日期: 2025-06-04 21:00
TVB News
South Korea's new president, Lee Jae-myung, has vowed to restart dormant talks with North Korea and bolster a trilateral partnership with the U.S. and Japan.
Lee, who rose from childhood poverty, formally began his term today, hours after winning a snap election triggered by the removal of predecessor Yoon Suk-yeol over his ill-fated imposition of martial law.
President Xi Jinping congratulated Lee on his win.
Before his inauguration, South Korea's new president, Lee Jae-myung, visited the National Cemetery in Seoul.
With his wife Kim Hea-kyung, Lee paid tribute to those who fought in the war of independence and the Korean War, and former leaders of the country.
He then took the oath, vowing to repair South Korea after a chaotic six months sparked by December's ill-fated martial law declaration that led to the impeachment and ousting of predecessor Yoon Suk-yeol.
Liberal Lee scored a decisive victory over conservative rival Kim Moon-soo, earning 49.42 percent of the votes. Kim took 41.15 percent, with around 35 million people casting their ballots in Tuesday's snap election. Lee was among those who leapt over barricades and dodged soldiers to enter parliament and block Yoon's martial law decree in December.
Here he is in January 2024, leaving hospital after being stabbed in the neck when he was opposition leader.
A school drop-out-turned-lawyer, Lee was born into poverty, enduring a difficult childhood, including a stint as an underage labourer. After some failed forays into politics, Lee broke through by being elected Seongnam mayor in 2010.
From 2018 to 2021, he served as governor of Gyeonggi province surrounding Seoul, before emerging as leader of the opposition, narrowly losing to Yoon in the 2022 presidential election.
Lee has promised to revive democracy and the economy at a time when Seoul is still trying to deal with U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policies. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio congratulated Lee on his win, but others in Washington are concerned about his intention to balance relations with the U.S. and China.
While the U.S. says the election was free and fair, Reuters quoted an unnamed official as saying the White House remained concerned and opposed to Chinese interference in democracies around the world.
Lee says he will bolster ties with the U.S. and Japan while also pursuing talks with North Korea, saying "peace with no need to fight is the best security."
Pyongyang and Seoul have not engaged in talks since 2019.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba congratulated Lee and said he hopes for an early summit between the two leaders.
Many South Koreans hope Lee can help the country move on from the chaos caused by martial law.
This 22-year-old student said the president must revive the economy and unify the public still confused by the effects of Yoon's martial law debacle.
Businessman Jeong Min-doo said he wants Lee to get rid of the remnants of martial law and boost the economy.
