South Korea to seek peace despite North's revised constitution

SEOUL: South Korea's presidential office said on Thursday it would pursue its peace efforts despite North Korea's constitutional revision that deleted all references to uniting the divided peninsula.

The two Koreas remain technically at war because the 1950-53 conflict ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty.

North Korea's constitution had previously stated that the nuclear-armed country sought "the reunification of the homeland."

But that clause no longer appears in the latest version of the document, which was reviewed by AFP on Wednesday.

"We will comprehensively review matters related to the trend of the revision of the North Korean Constitution," South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's office said.

"Based on a comprehensive review, the government will consistently promote the policy of peaceful coexistence on the Korean Peninsula."

South Korea's own constitution contains a commitment to peaceful unification.

Lee has taken a dovish approach towards the North, repeatedly calling for unconditional talks and vowing to act "proactively" to restore trust.

His administration has hinted that it may have lobbied the United States to ensure that UN humanitarian aid exemptions reached the North.

But those overtures have fallen short so far.

In February, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Pyongyang had "absolutely no business dealing with South Korea", adding that it would "permanently exclude South Korea from the category of compatriots."

Kim has also dismissed Seoul's peace efforts as a "clumsy, deceptive farce."