South Korea leader at UN vows to end 'vicious cycle' with North

South Korea's dovish new president vowed Tuesday at the United Nations to work to end the "vicious cycle" of tensions with the North as he promised not to seek regime change.

"We intend to end the vicious cycle of unnecessary inter-Korean military tension and hostile acts," President Lee Jae-Myung told the UN General Assembly.

He pointed to his administration's decision to halt measures that include the sending leaflets with hostile messages across the military frontier.

South Korea "clearly reaffirms that it respects the North's current system, that it will not pursue any form of unification by absorption, and that it has no intention of engaging in hostile paths," Lee said.

"We must end the era of hostility and confrontation on the Korean Peninsula and usher in a new era of peaceful coexistence," he said.

The approach marks a strong contrast in tone from his conservative predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol, who advocated pressure on North Korea and highlighted the human rights situation in the authoritarian state. Yoon was impeached after he briefly imposed martial law.

Despite the new president's outreach, North Korea has said so far said it has no intention of sitting down with Lee and has long cast Seoul as a puppet of Washington.

But North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has voiced openness to meeting with Donald Trump, recalling fondly their three meetings during the US president's first term.

On a visit to Washington last month, Lee encouraged Trump to pursue fresh diplomacy with Pyongyang.

North Korea, however, has been firm that it will not give up its nuclear arsenal. Trump in his first term failed to seal an agreement to end the North's nuclear program.