“From this point on, we will not forgive any provocative behavior [from North Korea], and protect this country with our own strength,” President Lee declared on the 23rd.

President Lee, who was speaking during a meeting with 200 Korean War descendants, veterans and families in Colombia, “Our goal right now is for the Korean Peninsula to achieve peace and come together and unify.”

“By Korean time, tomorrow is the 62nd anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War,“ he said, “So our meeting today is significant.”

President Lee emphasized, “We have extremely strong defensive capabilities and have the power to deter any provocation of war. If we were to go to war our goal would be to win, but our larger goal is to deter war and maintain peace on the Peninsula”.

President Lee also thanked Colombia for its contribution to the Korean War effort 62 years ago, and left flowers at the Korean War Memorial Tower at Bogota National Defense University.