South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said his government will move to restore the 2018 Comprehensive Military Agreement with North Korea, pledging to suspend front-line drills and other hostile activities along the heavily fortified border. In a Liberation Day address on Friday, Lee also affirmed Seoul’s “respect” for Pyongyang’s political system and ruled out pursuing unification by absorption, urging the North to respond to the overture and resume dialogue. Signed on 19 September 2018, the pact created no-fly zones, halted live-fire exercises within 5 kilometres of the Military Demarcation Line and removed some guard posts, markedly lowering the risk of accidental clashes on land, sea and air. It was the most substantive confidence-building measure to emerge from that year’s summitry between then-presidents Moon Jae-in and Kim Jong Un. The agreement unravelled amid escalating weapons tests, balloon launches and propaganda broadcasts, prompting Seoul’s conservative government in 2024 to suspend key clauses and reinstate surveillance flights; Pyongyang declared it was “no longer bound” by the deal. North Korea has recently dismissed conciliatory signals from Seoul, and analysts say it remains unclear whether Kim’s government will re-enter talks or reciprocate the latest step.