South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has declared the reunification of families separated by the 1950–1953 Korean War "the most pressing issue" between the two Koreas, calling for an end to delays in allowing divided relatives to meet. Speaking through a statement read by Unification Minister Chung Dong-young at a ceremony marking Separated Families Day in Seoul — Lee himself was in New York for the UN General Assembly — the president said eight years had passed since the last reunion and urged both sides to replace hostility with genuine exchange. Of the 134,843 families registered with the South Korean government as separated, over 101,000 have already died, and roughly two-thirds of the survivors are aged 80 or older, underscoring the urgency of the issue.