President Lee Jae Myung stressed Monday efforts to induce North Korea to halt its expanding nuclear and missile programs as a realistic short-term goal, citing the “reality” of the regime’s advancing military capabilities posing a threat to regional and global security.

In a press conference marking his first year in office, Lee noted that while the ultimate goal of denuclearizing the North should remain unchanged, it would be irresponsible to disregard the reality that Pyongyang sees little incentive to relinquish its nuclear arsenal.

“North Korea continues to produce nuclear material as we speak … What happens if we allow this to go on? There will be more nuclear weapons, and ICBM (intercontinental ballistic missile) technology will move closer to completion. It is becoming worse. That is the reality,” he said.

“Let’s not give up our denuclearization goal … (but seek) no additional production of nuclear material, no transfer of them abroad, a moratorium, a stop to the ICBM development. We have to set this as a short-term goal and negotiate (with the North),” he said.

Lee added this would benefit both the Korean Peninsula and the international community by not leaving the situation as is.

Lee’s remarks came amid growing doubts over whether North Korea’s denuclearization remains a viable solution to North Korea’s advancing nuclear programs, especially with Russia and China effectively turning a blind eye to the North’s nuclear issue.

The remarks also draw attention as Chinese President Xi Jinping is on a two-day state visit to Pyongyang from Monday, on a trip likely seen as intended at reasserting its influence over the North.

Beijing has increasingly refrained from mentioning the North’s denuclearization on the diplomatic front, as seen in its omission in the latest white defense paper last year.

The North has bristled at moves to uphold the denuclearization commitment by South Korea, the United States and the international community.

On Sunday, the North Korean leader’s sister, Kim Yo-jong, called such efforts an “anachronistic dream” and said the North’s status as a nuclear-armed state is “absolutely irreversible.”

Last week, the North’s leader Kim Jong-un visited a new nuclear facility and vowed to bolster the country’s nuclear arsenal at an “exponential rate.”

To achieve that short-term goal, it is crucial to continue efforts to resume dialogue with the North, Lee said.

“I have spoken about this to President Trump and other world leaders that if we do nothing about this, it will get worse. That the sanctions are not working,” he said. “So we need to be realistic and have talks based on short-, mid- and long-term goals.”

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