Park Jin "I Do Not Agree with the Downplaying of President Yoon Seok-yeol's Diplomatic Mission Abroad" (Comprehensive)

Foreign Minister Park Jin States Position on Dismissal Recommendation on the Morning of the 30th
Direct Rebuttal to Opposition's Criticism of President Yoon Seok-yeol's Overseas Diplomatic Incident

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo In-ho] Foreign Minister Park Jin stated on the 30th, "The opposition party is belittling the president's recent overseas trip as a diplomatic disaster, but I cannot agree with that."

On the same day, Minister Park met with reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Seoul and expressed his feelings about the opposition party's unilateral passage of a motion for his dismissal in the National Assembly the previous day, saying, "I feel deeply troubled about how our politics have come to this state. I have lost sleep over the past few days."

Minister Park emphasized, "I believe that we must protect our national interests and dignity ourselves," and added, "Therefore, I will listen carefully to the opposition's criticism as a call to perform better in national interest diplomacy."

He reaffirmed his stance expressed the previous day, saying, "Now is not the time for political strife but to think about national interests," and "In that sense, as the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I intend to do my best in fulfilling my duties."

Earlier, after the passage of the dismissal motion, Minister Park released a statement saying, "Diplomacy must never become a victim of political strife under any circumstances," and "I will do my utmost in my responsibilities without wavering."

Minister Park said, "Personally, I have reflections and feel distressed and upset. However, as the saying goes, the ground hardens after the rain; I will take this as an opportunity for a new start and dedicate all my abilities and passion to the national interest diplomacy of the Republic of Korea."

When asked if he had spoken with President Yoon Seok-yeol after the dismissal motion passed the previous day, Minister Park replied, "Yes," but added, "I cannot disclose the contents of the conversation."

In response to a question about whether he suggested to the president that an apology was necessary for causing confusion, he answered, "Rather than assigning blame now, I think I need to reflect deeply and consider how to carry out better national interest diplomacy."