President Lee Jae Myung has acknowledged that North Korea remains cold and unresponsive despite recent attempts to ease border tension, but emphasized that South Korea will continue its effort for dialogue.

Lee addressed inter-Korean issues Thursday during his 100-day press conference at the former presidential compound Cheong Wa Dae.

He said it would be unrealistic to expect North Korea to immediately change its attitude in response to some conciliatory measures by the new South Korean government.

He stressed, however, that easing tensions is beneficial for South Korea, regardless of Pyongyang’s attitude. 

The president judged that inter-Korean relations cannot be resolved by South Korea alone, pointing out that North Korea views the United States as the main threat to its regime, and therefore prioritizes its relationship with Washington.

He also underscored that U.S.-North Korea dialogue contributes to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and that South Korea does not need to insist on leading the process but should play its role as “pacemaker.”