South Korea’s embattled president named Yoon Suk Yeol as a replacement for the resigning defense minister, even as the parliament introduced a motion to impeach Yoon over his botched actions. they are trying to impose martial law this week and the US government criticized their actions as “ill-judged”.
It came as the floor leader of South Korea’s ruling party vowed on Thursday that all lawmakers would be “united” to defeat the Yoon-led opposition movement.
“All the ruling party’s 108 legislators and the people will remain united in rejecting the president’s request,” Choo Kyung-ho said at a live party meeting. Opposition MPs need eight ruling party lawmakers to vote with them on the impeachment bill.
On Thursday morning, Yoon accepted the resignation of Kim Yong-hyun and named his ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Choi Byung-hyuk, as the new defense minister, Yonhap reported on Thursday.
Yoon’s office confirmed the appointment of Choi, a former army general, to the post. Kim, who had also been against the impeachment motion, reportedly warned Yoon to declare martial law on Tuesday, which was replaced after a parliamentary vote requested by Yoon.
US Deputy Secretary of State, Kurt Campbell, said Yoon was “badly judged” by the martial law trial, which was taken by surprise by the White House.
At an event organized by the Aspen Strategy Forum, Campbell said both political parties in South Korea could agree that his decision was “absolutely problematic,” although the deep political polarization and division was a confirmed tribute to the strength of South Korean democracy.
He said that South Korea will be “challenged” in the coming months and that the US’s intention to open a partnership with Seoul is “absolutely rock solid.”
Yoon’s ruling People’s Power party said the move would oppose the prosecution It was introduced on Thursday but the party was divided into crisis.
The opposition Democratic Party, which has a majority in parliament, has at least eight of the ruling party’s lawmakers rejecting the proposal to pass it. Lawmakers could vote as early as Friday.
“The Yoon Suk Yeol government’s declaration of emergency martial law has caused great confusion and fear among our people,” Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Seung-won told a session of South Korea’s National Assembly held in the early hours of Thursday.
The declaration of martial law late on Tuesday was an attempt to shut down political activity and censor media in South Korea, which is Asia’s fourth-largest economy and a key US ally. The attack drives Yoon’s officers into disarray and chaos ensues for six hours.
None of the 108 ruling lawmakers were present to introduce the impeachment motion. The move paves the way for voting to take place in the next 24 to 72 hours.
The push for the overnight vote follows chaos after Yoon declared martial law and armed forces tried to storm the National Assembly building in Seoul, only to be resisted when parliamentary troops sprayed fire extinguishers.
The people and helpers who protected us from the council protected us with their bodies. The people have won, and it’s time for us to protect the people,” Kim said.
“We need to immediately suspend President Yoon’s authority. He has committed an indelible historical crime, whose concern must be calmed so that they can return to their daily lives.”
The opposition parties are demanding a two-thirds majority to pass a bill of impeachment. If it passes, South Korea’s constitutional court will then decide whether to uphold the motion – a process that could take up to 180 days.
If Yoon were suspended from exercising power, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo would fill himself in as leader.
If the president were to fight or be removed from office, a new election was held within 60 days.
Yoon told the nation in a televised address late Tuesday that martial law was necessary to defend the country from North Korean anti-state forces and to defend freedom and order, though he did not cite any specific threats.
Within hours, South Korea’s parliament, with 190 of its 300 members present, unanimously voted to lift martial law, with 18 members of Yoon’s party present.
The president then rescinded the declaration of martial law about six hours after it was issued.
“There are opinions that it would be too much to submit to martial law, and that we are not following the procedures of emergency martial law, but it was done strictly within the framework of the constitution,” a South Korean presidential official told Reuters by telephone.
There has been no reaction yet from North Korea to the drama in the South.
Yoon had been embraced by leaders in the West as a partner in US-led efforts to unite democracies against growing authoritarianism in China, Russia and elsewhere.
But he worried among South Koreans by labeling critics as “totalitarian and anti-state communist forces.” In November, he denied wrongdoing in response to a flurry of allegations against him and his wife and he took a hard line against the colleges.
Reuters contributed to this report