Lee Proposes 'Partnership of Constructive Contributors' in Response to Hormuz Energy Shock... Urges Dialogue Among South, North, US, and China

President Lee Delivers UN General Assembly Address
Proposes Expanding Cooperation Centered on Willing Countries
Unveils Three Pillars for a Nuclear-Free Korean Peninsula
"Inclusive, Stable, and Responsible Peaceful Coexistence"

President Lee Jae-myung has emphasized international cooperation to overcome the supply chain shocks triggered by the blockade of the Hormuz Strait and the Red Sea, while proposing a "Partnership of Constructive Contributors." Rather than wasting time seeking solutions that all countries agree upon, he suggested expanding the scope of cooperation by focusing on those countries that are willing and able to work together.

President Lee Jae-myung delivers a keynote speech at the UN General Assembly Hall in New York, USA, on the 22nd (local time). 2026.9.23 Yonhap News Agency

Additionally, President Lee presented to the international community the so-called "three pillars of peace coexistence" for a "nuclear-free Korean Peninsula" that he had announced in his Liberation Day address: inclusive, stable, and responsible coexistence.

On September 22 (local time), during his keynote speech at the 81st United Nations General Assembly at the UN Headquarters in New York, President Lee announced these proposals as one of the three visions of the "K-Initiative."

President Lee stated, "The repeated blockades in the Hormuz Strait and the Red Sea have shown how severely the world can be impacted when critical routes for energy and logistics are weaponized. Nations equipped with the capacity and will to supply global public goods must expand the space for cooperation. I wish to call this the 'Partnership of Constructive Contributors.'"

He also expressed strong condemnation regarding the armed clashes occurring in the Hormuz Strait and the Red Sea. President Lee emphasized, "The free and safe passage through international straits is a right guaranteed by international law and a foundation of the global economy. Any act that attacks merchant ships or threatens the lives and safety of crew members cannot be justified under any circumstances."

Concerning the proposed "Partnership of Constructive Contributors," President Lee clarified, "This is not a call to create a new organization or an exclusive group. Instead, we should respect the international order and the functions of the United Nations, and flexibly and openly broaden our cooperation. When the results of cooperation — achieved both individually and collectively — are accumulated, this can restore trust in multilateralism, overcoming geopolitical rivalries, deadlocks, and fragmentation."

President Lee also introduced "the global basic AI society" and "green transformation" as the other visions of the "K-Initiative." He declared, "The Republic of Korea envisions a global basic AI society in which no country or individual is excluded from the fundamental benefits of AI. We will take the lead in ensuring that artificial intelligence becomes a tool to solve global challenges, including the climate crisis, health, food security, and refugee issues." Regarding "green transformation," he added, "The Republic of Korea has set a national greenhouse gas reduction target for 2035 and is actively participating in climate crisis responses, centered around the Paris Agreement and the United Nations."

Furthermore, President Lee unveiled three major policy blueprints toward North Korea: "inclusive, stable, and coexistence for world peace," starting from mutual respect for each other's systems, controlling crises and conflicts, and ultimately expanding peace on the Korean Peninsula into stability for Northeast Asia and the broader world. However, it was reported that the seat for North Korea's delegation remained vacant during his address. President Lee declared in his speech, "I wish to proclaim before the international community these three blueprints for peaceful coexistence on the Korean Peninsula."

President Lee Jae-myung is delivering the keynote speech at the UN General Assembly Hall in New York, USA on the 22nd (local time). 2026.9.23 Yonhap News

In this speech, President Lee reaffirmed at the United Nations the peace coexistence framework he had presented at his recent Liberation Day address, and, rather than insisting on the unrealistic goal of "complete denuclearization," he emphasized a transition to a peace regime while proposing a phased approach to resolving the North Korean nuclear issue. In this phased approach, President Lee notably avoided the term "denuclearization," instead using the concept of a "nuclear-free Korean Peninsula" and calling for the resumption of dialogue among key stakeholders, including North and South Korea, the United States, and China.

President Lee said, "We can halt the North's escalating nuclear and missile capabilities, achieve medium-term reductions, and ultimately advance toward a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula. The Republic of Korea will help lay the groundwork so that long-stalled dialogue between North Korea and the United States resumes as soon as possible and develops into multi-party talks (involving South and North Korea, the United States, and China, among others) aimed at ending the Korean War and transitioning to a peace regime on the peninsula."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.