Lee Jae-myung stands on the UN podium, but the shadow of Kim Jong-un looms. A symbolic representation of the controversy over "mimicking Kim Jong-un" seen in his North Korea policy and denuclearization vision. Han-Mi-Il Daily Graphic

President Lee Jae-myung delivered a keynote address at the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly held at the UN headquarters in New York on September 23, 2025 (local time).

While the speech was filled with flamboyant rhetoric and symbolism—such as "a revolution of light" and "five-colored glow sticks"—it lacked the concrete solutions demanded by the international community.

Slogans like "AI for all," "more democracy," and "a grand energy transition" were loud, but the strategies for implementation were meager. Ultimately, it is difficult to escape the criticism that it was all "sound and fury, signifying nothing."

His North Korea policy, in particular, revealed serious issues. The President declared a three-point principle: "respecting the North Korean regime, not seeking absorption-based unification, and refraining from hostile acts."

This is, in effect, an acceptance of North Korea's "theory of two states," which directly contradicts Article 3 of the Constitution, which states that "The territory of the Republic of Korea shall consist of the Korean peninsula and its adjacent islands." For a head of state to make remarks on the international stage that appear to recognize North Korea as a separate country is to undermine the constitutional order himself.

The "E.N.D. initiative" (Engagement, Normalization, Denuclearization) he subsequently proposed also bears a striking resemblance to the phased, simultaneous action approach that North Korea has consistently emphasized.

While the justification of expanding inter-Korean exchange and easing tensions may seem valid, it fundamentally presupposes coexistence while treating North Korea's possession of nuclear weapons as a fait accompli.

Regarding the nuclear issue, the President proposed a phased denuclearization of "suspension → reduction → dismantlement," claiming that "short-term denuclearization is impossible."

However, the United States adheres to the principle of CVID (Complete, Verifiable, and Irreversible Dismantlement), and the international community—including the UN Security Council, G7, EU, and ASEAN—also demands "complete denuclearization."

A South Korean president publicly committing to a management-and-freeze-style approach on the UN stage can only be viewed as a clash with international consensus.

The UN General Assembly is a stage watched by the entire world. What a South Korean president must emphasize there is not emotional rhetoric, but concrete cooperative measures that the international community can trust.

Instead, this speech leaned toward flamboyant language and emotional symbolism aimed at his domestic base and expatriates. Far from gaining the trust of the international community and its allies, it has only served to narrow the scope of South Korean diplomacy.

For the Republic of Korea to establish itself as a responsible nation in the international community, it needs substantive vision and action that align with the Constitution, its alliances, and international consensus, rather than empty, flowery language.

Yet, President Lee Jae-myung’s attitude was exactly the opposite. Is he afraid that Kim Jong-un might reveal the truth about the Ssangbangwool North Korea remittance scandal? He has effectively cast himself as an auxiliary to Kim Jong-un. There is no more dangerous diplomatic choice than this.

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