It Seems It Will Be Decided This Weekend or Early Next Week
[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] The Yongsan Ministry of National Defense building and the Gwanghwamun Ministry of Foreign Affairs building are being considered as the presidential office for President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol.
Yoon Han-hong, a member of the People Power Party and appointed head of the 'Blue House Relocation Task Force (TF),' said in a phone interview with Asia Economy on the 15th, "We are currently reviewing two locations for the presidential office: the Yongsan Ministry of National Defense building and the Gwanghwamun Ministry of Foreign Affairs building."
The government complex, which had been considered as the Gwanghwamun office, has been excluded from the options. Yoon said, "It is not the government complex but an annex building."
The reason President-elect Yoon's side is newly considering the Yongsan building is due to advantages such as the ability to utilize the Ministry of National Defense's underground bunker and helicopter landing site. If a government building is used, there is a strong need to maintain the Blue House bunker and helicopter landing site. In this case, the original intention to return the Blue House to the public could be undermined. Additionally, the area around the Ministry of National Defense has no high-rise buildings and is easy to isolate from the outside.
The official residence is also expected to be decided according to the office location. If the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building is used, it is highly likely that the Prime Minister's residence in Samcheong-dong, which was initially considered, will be utilized. If the office is decided to be in Yongsan, the Army Chief of Staff's residence in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, or the residences of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and National Defense may be considered.
The office location needs to be decided quickly due to the time required to vacate and remodel existing facilities. Therefore, it is expected that the direction of the relocation will be decided by this weekend or early next week.
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