Seoul (CNN) The age of appeasing North Korea is over and any new talks between Seoul and Pyongyang must be initiated by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, South Korea's new conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol said on Monday. North Korea has launched 15 missile tests so far this year -- more than in the past two years combined -- and last month Kim vowed to "strengthen and develop" its nuclear forces at the "highest possible" speed. From his new presidential office at the former defense building in Seoul, Yoon told CNN South Korea and its allies stand ready for any acts of North Korean provocation. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol speaking to CNN from the presidential office on May 23. "Just to escape temporarily North Korean provocation or conflict is not something that we should do," he said, pointing at the previous liberal administration's conciliatory strategy.

Source: The North Africa Journal May 24, 2022 04:06 UTC