1 of 2 | South Korean President Lee Jae Myung (C) met with people who were displaced during the 1950-53 Korean War at the Ganghwa Peace Observatory in Incheon on Friday. Lee called for North Korea to resume separated family reunions at the meeting. Pool Photo by Yonhap/EPA
SEOUL, Oct. 3 (UPI) -- South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Friday called for North Korea to allow families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War to hold reunions or exchange letters.
Lee made the remarks while meeting with elderly citizens who had relatives in the North ahead of Chuseok, the mid-autumn festival that is one of Korea's most important holidays.
"I strongly urge the North to consider these unfortunate circumstances from a humanitarian perspective," Lee said at the Ganghwa Peace Observatory in Incheon, which overlooks North Korea.
"I believe that it is the responsibility of all political leaders in both the South and the North to ensure that these tragically separated families can confirm the fate of their relatives and, at the very least, exchange letters," he said, according to his office. He added that the families should ideally be able to meet again in person.
