Seoul, Jan 22 (IANS) South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s approval rating has edged down to 59 per cent, a survey showed on Thursday.
In a National Barometre Survey conducted from Monday to Wednesday, the positive assessment of Lee’s performance inched down 2 percentage points from a poll conducted two weeks earlier, while the negative assessment rose 2 percentage points to 31 per cent.
The approval rating for the ruling Democratic Party added 1 percentage point to 40 per cent, while support for the main Opposition People Power Party slipped 3 percentage points to 20 per cent, Yonhap News Agency reported.
On relations with China, 50 per cent of the respondents said South Korea should strengthen ties with Beijing, while 41 per cent replied Seoul should keep its distance.
As for Japan, 65 per cent supported further improving bilateral relations, while 31 per cent said South Korea should be cautious about improving ties.
The survey was conducted by pollsters Embrain Public, Kstat Research, Korea Research and Hankook Research on 1,001 people aged 18 and older.
The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95 per cent confidence level.
On Wednesday, Lee Jae Myung said he will make diplomatic efforts to help North Korea and the United States quickly resume bilateral talks while implementing measures to create conditions for a resumption of inter-Korean dialogue.
“As a pacemaker, we will make diplomatic efforts to ensure that North Korea-US dialogue will soon take place and create conditions for the resumption of inter-Korean dialogue,” Lee said in a nationally televised press conference for the new year.
“The sharp chill will not thaw all at once, but we will consistently pursue feasible measures to draw a response from the North and reduce tensions on the Korean Peninsula,” Lee said.
Lee also vowed to take steps to restore the September 19 military agreement signed in 2018 between former President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. The pact was fully suspended in 2024 amid heightened tensions between Seoul and Pyongyang.
“We will restore the September 19 military agreement to prevent accidental clashes between the South and the North and to build political and military trust,” Lee said, adding that South Korea “will also continue to consider creative solutions through which peace can benefit both Koreas.”
Asked about how he would improve relations with North Korea, Lee replied that South Korea would make utmost efforts to build a “situation where peaceful coexistence is possible.”
Lee said a pragmatic approach is needed to deal with North Korea, citing the North’s advancement of nuclear capabilities.
“Nuclear materials capable of producing 10 to 20 nuclear weapons a year continue to be produced (in North Korea) and intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) technology is still advancing,” he said.
Lee reiterated his three-stage, phased road map for denuclearization of North Korea’s nuclear program.
“It would be beneficial if no additional nuclear material is produced, if such material is not transferred abroad, and if ICBM technology is no longer developed,” he said. “We should not abandon our ideals, but pursue realistic negotiations to halt the program, reduce it, and move toward denuclearization in the long term.”
Lee reaffirmed his commitment to “a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula” based on the robust alliance with the US, strong self-reliant defence capabilities and pragmatic diplomacy centered on national interests.
Lee has offered to resume stalled talks with the North, but Pyongyang has rebuffed his peace overtures. Tensions remain high after the North accused the South of sending drones into its territory and demanded an apology from Seoul.
–IANS
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