Presidential Office Summit Talks: "Comprehensive Dialogue" VS Democratic Party "Need to Decide Answers on Some Agendas"

Hong Cheol-ho Senior Secretary for Political Affairs 2nd Working Meeting Briefing
"Democratic Party to Provide Response in 3rd Meeting"

Hong Cheol-ho, Senior Secretary for Political Affairs at the Presidential Office, is explaining the results of the working-level meeting for the summit between President Yoon Seok-yeol and Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, at the Presidential Office building in Yongsan, Seoul on the 25th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Presidential Office announced on the 25th that ahead of the summit meeting between President Yoon Suk-yeol and Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, during the second working-level meeting held, they proposed "to hold a freely formatted meeting as soon as possible without prior agenda coordination or agreement, allowing for diverse discussions without any agenda restrictions."

Hong Cheol-ho, Senior Secretary for Political Affairs, said at a briefing held at the Presidential Office that afternoon regarding the summit meeting, "This afternoon, we held the second meeting with Cheon Jun-ho, Chief of Staff to the Democratic Party leader."

Senior Secretary Hong explained, "The meeting between President Yoon and the opposition leader should be a place where all matters related to state affairs, including urgent livelihood issues, can be freely discussed," adding, "President Yoon has already expressed his willingness to listen to any topic, and Leader Lee also expressed the same stance, stating that he would convey the public sentiment reflected in the general election without any distortion."

He continued, "This aligns with public opinion calling for the president and the opposition leader to meet and have broad and diverse discussions on state affairs without being bound by formality or conditions," and added, "Regarding this proposal, Chief of Staff Cheon said he would consult with the leadership and provide a response later, and the meeting was concluded."

Hong Cheol-ho, Senior Secretary for Political Affairs at the Presidential Office, is explaining the results of the working-level meeting for the summit between President Yoon Suk-yeol and Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, at the Presidential Office building in Yongsan, Seoul, on the 25th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier, it was reported that during the first working-level meeting on the 23rd, Leader Lee raised the livelihood recovery support fund (KRW 250,000 per person nationwide), which was a campaign pledge during the general election, as an agenda item. A Presidential Office official said, "It is true that the Democratic Party side made specific proposals," but added, "However, rather than responding to specific proposals, we replied that we would accept them in a broad sense."

He further explained, "For example, regarding several agenda items proposed by the Democratic Party, such as the KRW 250,000 livelihood recovery support fund and the special prosecutor law for Chae Sang-byung, some cannot be accepted, partially accepted, or rejected," noting, "There are issues that violate the National Assembly Act and other laws." He explained that some parts fall outside the president’s authority, and rather than partially excluding these proposals, the tasks should be divided according to the roles of the president, the Democratic Party, and the People Power Party.

When asked whether the opposition’s demand for a public apology was included in the agenda, the official responded, "I never said that, but it seems someone from the Democratic Party mentioned it," adding, "I believe Leader Lee would not bring up such a matter when sitting face-to-face with the president. It can be considered unconfirmed."

Regarding opinions that agreement on the summit meeting date is being delayed, he said, "We want to say that the agenda has been set," because everything is open as the agenda was included in the document we delivered," he mentioned. He added, "I understand the Democratic Party is probably consulting internally, but I hope the first meeting will yield good results if our proposal is accepted," and "the Democratic Party side will provide a response for the third meeting, so we will wait for the outcome."

However, the Presidential Office and the Democratic Party showed differences in their positions on setting the summit meeting agenda. The official said, "The Democratic Party’s position is to finalize the results first," while "we believe the two leaders should have an open and sincere discussion without dividing the agenda one by one, and based on the results, if there are tasks for the ruling and opposition parties or the Presidential Office, they will be addressed through policy or follow-up measures."

While the Presidential Office emphasizes having a comprehensive dialogue without agenda restrictions, the Democratic Party insists on setting answers for certain agenda items, suggesting that more time will be needed to reconcile the positions of both sides.