President Lee Jae Myung (second from left) on Dec. 3 gives a statement at the Office of the President in Seoul to mark the first anniversary of the failed attempt to impose martial law that occurred on Dec. 3, 2024. From left are Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik, President Lee, National Security Office Director Wi Sung-lac and Presidential Chief of Staff for Policy Kim Yong-beom.

By Yoon Sojung
Photos = Yonhap News

President Lee Jae Myung on Dec. 3 said, "The people truly deserve the Nobel Peace Prize for peacefully overcoming a crisis of democracy."

He said this in a statement at the Office of the President in Seoul to mark the first anniversary of the failed attempt to impose martial law that occurred on the same day a year ago.

"The people peacefully thwarted it," he said in praising the public's efforts to protect democracy. "This proved to the world the resilience of democracy in the Republic of Korea."

"Ironically, the coup attempt was also an opportunity to show the world the surprising resilience of democracy in the Republic of Korea."

He expressed deep thanks to "the great people of the Republic of Korea" and pledged to designate Dec. 3 as "People's Sovereignty Day."

"As long as the Republic of Korea exists, we will commemorate the preservation of constitutional order and democracy and use this as an opportunity to pledge to build a stronger democracy," he added.

"The Revolution of Light is not over yet," he said, stressing the need to find the truth and punish those involved in the coup attempt. "I will complete the Revolution of Light and boldly move forward while trusting you, the people, to build a nation where citizens are truly sovereign."

Following his speech, President Lee held a news conference for foreign media and stressed Korea's outstanding democracy.

"Democracy in Korea pursues directness," he said, hailing nonviolent struggles by the people in two impeachments of presidents in under 10 years as a defining characteristic.

"The Republic of Korea's power comes from democracy," he added. "The notion of 'the people are heaven' is the very basis of democracy."

Questions on the Korean Peninsula followed.

On bilateral ties with Russia, President Lee said, "War should always be avoided under any circumstance," conveying his hope for an early end to the war in Ukraine from a humanitarian perspective.

Stressing constant dialogue and communication for stability in Northeast Asia, he added, "We are limited in what we can do now but strive for continuous communication."

Turning to inter-Korean ties, the president expressed regret by saying things were "at a point where there is no eye of a needle."

"The U.S. is legally a direct party to the armistice agreement," he added. "President Trump is strongly committed to peace and has a major part to play, so I expect him to assume the role of pacemaker."

On the possibility of the Korean military procuring nuclear arms and developing nuclear-powered submarines, he drew a line by saying, "Japan also reprocesses spent nuclear fuel and extracts plutonium so are you worried that it might make nuclear weapons?"

"If that is the case, we can do nothing," he added. "The issues of enriching nuclear uranium and reprocessing spent nuclear fuel are not related to nonproliferation."

On nuclear-powered submarines, he said, "Nuclear-powered submarines are for military purposes but do not constitute nuclear weapons," adding, "Since they are not nuclear bombs, they are apparently not a subject for nonproliferation debate."

A nuclear-free Korean Peninsula and its denuclearization are basic principles agreed on by both Koreas, he said, with Seoul having no intention of going against such principles.

On enriching and reprocessing nuclear fuel and facilities to build such submarines, President Lee said, "The key question is if we can (build the submarines) independently, with whether the submarines are built in or out of the country a secondary issue."

"Considering production cost and period, economy and security, it is desirable for us to do it ourselves, but our request is for the U.S. to permit us to supply fuel, which is currently prohibited, so that we can build them with our own technology."

President Lee Jae Myung on Dec. 3 points to a journalist with a question at a news conference for foreign media at Yeongbingwan Guest House of the former presidential complex of Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul to mark the first anniversary of the failed attempt to impose martial law that occurred on Dec. 3, 2024.