Yoon Likely to Appoint Kim Seung-gyeom as Joint Chiefs Chairman... Park Soon-ae and Kim Seung-hee Still 'Burden'

President Yoon: "The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff cannot be kept waiting for too long"... Ethical controversies over candidates Park and Kim persist

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] President Yoon Seok-yeol is reportedly set to appoint Kim Seung-gyeom as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the near future. This decision comes amid ongoing security crises following North Korea's successive provocations. Earlier, before his overseas trip on the 21st of last month, President Yoon had revealed, "It is difficult to wait too long for the Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman."

According to political circles and the presidential office on the 3rd, President Yoon plans to appoint candidate Kim without a parliamentary confirmation hearing. This is the second appointment without a hearing under the new administration, following Kim Chang-gi, the Commissioner of the National Tax Service. The deadline for resubmitting the confirmation hearing report for candidate Kim had already expired on the 29th of last month.

However, there remain many variables regarding the appointments of Park Soon-ae, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education candidate, and Kim Seung-hee, the Minister of Health and Welfare candidate. Candidate Park faces allegations of power abuse, past drunk driving, and controversies over duplicate publication of papers, while candidate Kim's situation has worsened as the Central Election Commission referred her to the prosecution for investigation on charges of violating the Political Funds Act. The ethical issues surrounding both candidates inevitably remain a burden for President Yoon.

Another variable to consider is the negotiation over the formation of the National Assembly's standing committees. The plan is to proceed with the confirmation hearings once the committee formation is complete and make a final decision on appointments based on the results.

Meanwhile, regarding Kim Ju-hyun, the Financial Services Commission Chairman candidate whose first hearing deadline passed on the 30th of last month, President Yoon is expected to request the resubmission of the hearing report to the National Assembly around the 4th. President Yoon will also soon decide whether to accept the resignation of Kim Chang-ryong, the Commissioner of the National Police Agency.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.