South Korea says security guarantees are key to North Korea's denuclearization

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung/DOK Republic of Korea

JAKARTA - South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said a condition needed to be created so that North Korea did not feel threatened so that it no longer felt the need for nuclear weapons.

"We must create a condition in which North Korea does not feel threatened... and can achieve the goal of nuclear weapons no longer being necessary," Lee said at a press conference a year into his presidency on Monday, June 8.

"If the situation in North Korea is more stable and the North Korean government's security concerns disappear, then new denuclearization issues can be discussed," he added. "This is a long-term goal."

Meanwhile, the short-term goal, said Lee, is at least to prevent North Korea from continuing to develop nuclear weapons.

The South Korean president said that the international community should not abandon the goal of denuclearization, but they must set short-, medium-, and long-term goals, and negotiate realistically.

In the first phase, negotiations can focus on the cessation of the production of additional nuclear material, prohibiting the export of such commodities, and establishing an effective moratorium.

Negotiations at that stage must also focus on stopping the development of ballistic missile and intercontinental missile technology, President Lee said.