South Korea’s top security adviser said that President Lee Jae Myung’s initiative to reignite dialogue with North Korea, presented during his keynote address at the United Nations General Assembly, is based on principles that were stressed in past inter-Korean agreements as well as the 2018 North Korea–United States Singapore summit.

National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac told reporters in New York on Tuesday that Lee's speech, during which he presented his “exchange, normalization and denuclearization” initiative, had served as a declaration of his goal to eliminate hostility on the Korean Peninsula and promote peaceful coexistence.

Wi described the three-pronged approach as part of a "parallel process" that does not prioritize one step over another. 

Going forward, Wi said the South Korean government will promote a structure in which the processes of exchange, normalization of relations and denuclearization is “mutually driven” through inter-Korean and U.S.-North Korea dialogue.

The security adviser added that UN Secretary-General António Guterres had agreed with Lee’s stance and expressed hope that it would contribute to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.