South Korea’s Lee vows practical steps to ease tensions with North Korea

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has pledged to continue seeking practical ways to ease military tensions with North Korea, despite an ongoing dispute over landmine explosions along the countries’ border, local media reported.

Lee made the remarks on Thursday at a ceremony marking the 78th Armed Forces Day at the military headquarters in Gyeryongdae, South Chungcheong Province, according to Yonhap News Agency.

The statement followed the explosion of two landmines in the Demilitarized Zone on Sept. 21, which wounded three South Korean soldiers.

Dispute over the landmine explosions

South Korea blamed North Korea for the blasts and demanded an apology. Pyongyang rejected the accusation, alleging that Seoul had fabricated the findings.

North Korea also warned of “immediate and merciless” retaliation if its troops came under fire.

Lee calls for steady engagement

“My administration will consistently pursue practical measures to reduce military tensions between the two Koreas,” Lee said.

“The knots in inter-Korean relations are extremely complex, but we will steadily, patiently strive to untie them, one by one,” the president added.