DPK presidential candidate vows to restore inter-Korean military pact, halt cross-border leaflets

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party of Korea candidate for the June 3 presidential election, greets market vendors during a visit to a traditional market in Gangwon Province, May 2. Yonhap

Democratic Party of Korea presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung said Friday he will seek to restore the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement and put a halt to cross-border leafleting to ensure better safety along the border.

In a Facebook post, Lee also vowed to stop blaring loudspeakers as he unveiled a set of pledges in line with his visit to the border regions in Gyeonggi Province and Gangwon Province earlier this week.

"We will establish a joint inter-Korean military committee and restore communication channels to stably manage inter-Korean risks, including military tensions," he said. "We will seek to resume inter-Korean exchanges and rebuild mutual trust."

Lee pledged to designate the border region as special economic zones for peace and said he would consider expanding it into "opportunity development special zones."

"The residents of the border areas who have made exceptional sacrifices since the division of the peninsula need special compensation," he said, promising to improve infrastructure and protect the property rights of the residents.

In June last year, under the former President Yook Suk Yeol administration, South Korea fully suspended the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement, in the wake of North Korea's trash balloon campaigns and attempts to disrupt GPS signals near border islands.