South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol has said he will fight to the end amid an investigation into alleged mutiny and impeachment attempts, effectively refusing to resign voluntarily. He said this in his address to the nation.
“I will fight to the end,” he said. Earlier, Yoon Seok-yeol said he was ready to undergo impeachment and investigation. In his opinion, the decision to impose martial law cannot be considered a mutiny, since he was trying to “protect the country.” He also pointed out that the imposition of martial law is part of the president’s powers, an act of state governance, on par with foreign policy, and therefore allegedly cannot be subject to “legal review.” Only parliament can cancel the president’s decision, Yoon Seok-yeol emphasized.
The South Korean leader claimed that he sent the military to the National Assembly not to disrupt the vote on lifting martial law, but to “maintain order.” “I’ll be honest: I ordered not to block the entrance to the National Assembly. Is it possible to commit treason for two hours? Is sending a small number of troops to maintain order a riot?” Yoon Seok-yeol asked rhetorically. Martial law was put into effect at 11:00 p.m. local time on December 3, and the parliament voted to lift it at around 1:00 a.m. on December 4. 280 special forces were sent to the National Assembly.
Earlier, Army Special Forces Commander Kwak Jong-geun claimed that the president ordered the deputies to be removed from the parliament building in order to disrupt the vote. According to the officer, the orders were received over a secure connection. The president insists that he obeyed the parliament’s decision and ordered the soldiers to be removed. The attempt to block the work of the parliament became the basis for an investigation into a rebellion aimed at overthrowing the constitutional order.