Yoon, 3 Hours 20 Minutes 'Residence Dinner' with Ruling Party Leadership... "Let's Fulfill Our Responsibilities and Roles"

First Lady Kim Geon-hee Welcomes Leadership, Showcases Various Parts of the Official Residence

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] On the 25th, President Yoon Seok-yeol held the first 'year-end party' and dinner meeting with the current leadership of the ruling party, the People Power Party, at the Hannam-dong residence. President Yoon officially invited guests to the residence for the second time, following Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, who visited Korea last week.

According to the presidential office on the 26th, the dinner at the residence the previous day lasted about 3 hours and 20 minutes, from around 6:50 PM to 10:10 PM.

From the People Power Party, 14 members attended, including Emergency Response Committee Chairman Jeong Jin-seok and committee members, Floor Leader Joo Ho-young, Policy Committee Chairman Seong Il-jong, Secretary-General Kim Seok-ki, Chief Spokesperson Yang Geum-hee, and Floor Spokespersons Kim Mi-ae and Jang Dong-hyuk. From the presidential office, Chief of Staff Kim Dae-gi, Senior Secretary for National Planning Lee Gwan-seop, Senior Secretary for Political Affairs Lee Jin-bok, and Senior Secretary for Public Relations Kim Eun-hye were present.

First Lady Kim Geon-hee personally welcomed the ruling party leadership who arrived before President Yoon and introduced various parts of the residence before the dinner, the presidential office stated.

Yang Geum-hee, Chief Spokesperson of the People Power Party, conveyed in a written briefing that President Yoon began the dinner by mentioning the Korea-Uruguay match the previous day, the Qatar World Cup, and the summit-level talks with Crown Prince bin Salman, the residence's 'first guest.' He then introduced the government's direction for state affairs and requested the cooperation and support of the People Power Party leadership.

It was also reported that he asked for cooperation in passing next year's budget bill, with the legal deadline (December 2) just a week away. The atmosphere was warm and friendly, and there were no direct mentions of sensitive issues. President Yoon reportedly organized the gathering to encourage the party's efforts in the presidential election, the new government's launch, and local elections, aiming to foster harmony and unity.

The presidential office stated in a written briefing after the dinner, "The People Power Party agreed to fulfill its responsibilities and roles as the ruling party."

The president frequently mentioned 'together,' and occasional applause was heard. Additionally, amid considerable dissatisfaction within the presidential office regarding the ruling and opposition parties' agreement on the national investigation into the 'Itaewon crowd crush tragedy' on the 24th, President Yoon encouraged Floor Leader Joo Ho-young, who led the agreement, saying, "You have worked hard," and reportedly even embraced him.

The dinner was held without joint (pool) coverage by the press corps. During the dinner, the presidential office separately announced that related videos and photos would not be released.