野 "President Yoon's empty-handed, servile diplomacy and verbal blunders... Full overhaul of diplomatic team inevitable"

Democratic Party's Full-Scale Criticism of Yoon Seok-yeol's Overseas Tour
Brief Meetings with Japan and the US, No Agenda
Insults Toward US Congress Point to Decline in National Dignity

Park Hong-geun, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending the policy coordination meeting held at the National Assembly on the 22nd and delivering opening remarks. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] The Democratic Party of Korea on the 22nd criticized the '30-minute meeting' between President Yoon Seok-yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio in New York, USA, and the '48-second exchange' with U.S. President Joe Biden as "empty-handed diplomacy, servile diplomacy." They also launched a full-scale offensive, pointing out that President Yoon's use of profanity directed at the U.S. Congress during an event hosted by President Biden that day was a "major diplomatic blunder."

Park Hong-geun, the floor leader of the Democratic Party, held a policy coordination meeting at the National Assembly that day and said, "Both the process and the outcome were humiliating," adding, "The Korea-Japan summit, which was said to have been agreed upon willingly, was nothing more than a meeting without even confirming specific agendas."

He pointed out that the meeting between President Yoon and Prime Minister Fumio lasted only about 30 minutes. Floor leader Park said, "From before the meeting, Japan had consistently ignored us, and there were even reports that an annoyed Prime Minister Kishida suggested not to meet. This contrasts with the stance of being willing to meet North Korea unconditionally," adding, "The roughly 30-minute meeting, barely arranged by going to where Prime Minister Fumio was early this morning, was a servile scene where we sat face-to-face without even the installation of our national flag, the Taegeukgi, in a one-sided courtship."

He also criticized the meeting with President Biden as lasting only 48 seconds. He said, "About an hour ago, I did not want to believe that the brief 48-second standing conversation with President Biden in another meeting room was the entirety of the summit," adding, "If that was all, it means that none of the important economic issues repeatedly emphasized, such as discrimination in electric vehicle subsidies and pressure on the bio-industry, were resolved, which is truly worrisome."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Along with this, he directly attacked by referring to the video of President Yoon's profanity, saying, "It caused a major diplomatic incident and great controversy." He said regarding President Yoon's overseas tour, "There was no purpose, strategy, or achievement in the summit diplomacy, and it is an international diplomatic disgrace for which responsibility must be taken," emphasizing, "Furthermore, a complete overhaul of the diplomatic line seems inevitable."

On the same day, floor spokesperson Oh Young-hwan also said in a back briefing, "The president's habit of using profanity, especially directed at a foreign parliament, being caught on video is causing the national interest and dignity to plummet in the summit diplomacy setting," adding, "President Yoon and the Blue House officials need to provide a sincere explanation about the context in which such words were exchanged."