South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday expressed his condolences to soldiers injured in Sept. 21 mine blast in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) while reaffirming his push to restore dialogue with North Korea, despite a finding by Seoul and the U.N. Command (UNC) that the explosion violated the armistice agreement.

Lee made the remarks during his address at a ceremony marking the 78th Armed Forces Day held annually, marking the South Korean military’s advance north of the 38th parallel during the 1950-53 Korean War.

“Even now, my heart aches when I think of our service members who were injured