Will the Defense Security Command Intervene Again to Prevent President Yoon's Arrest? [Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club]

Military Authorities Shift to Non-Deployment Stance After Initially Declaring Non-Intervention
Concern Over Military Sympathy Perceived in Blocking Arrest Warrant Execution

As the arrest warrant for President Yoon Suk-yeol expires on the 6th, attention is focused on whether the Capital Defense Command (SuBangSa) troops will intervene if the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Unit (GongSuCheo) and the police proceed with executing a second arrest warrant.

Yonhap News

On the 3rd, GongSuCheo and the police entered the presidential residence in Hannam-dong, Yongsan, Seoul, to arrest President Yoon Suk-yeol, and confronted SuBangSa soldiers. The military authorities moved to defuse the situation as the security forces under the Presidential Security Service became the center of political controversy. At that time, the Joint Chiefs of Staff stated, "The unit currently confronting GongSuCheo at the presidential residence is a security unit controlled by the Security Service." This implied that the military could not intervene in the forces under the Presidential Security Service.

However, controversy continued over whether the SuBangSa 55th Guard Unit confronted GongSuCheo. GongSuCheo claimed that they were surrounded by about 200 Security Service personnel and soldiers and could not enter the residence, but the Security Service explained, "The military was not deployed during the confrontation." If the Security Service deployed the 55th Guard Unit soldiers, who are conscripts fulfilling their national defense duties, as 'private soldiers' protecting President Yoon, it could escalate into a sensitive issue affecting public sentiment.

The Ministry of National Defense also changed its stance. The Ministry stated that it had twice informed the Presidential Security Service that deploying military personnel in response to the execution of President Yoon Suk-yeol's arrest warrant was inappropriate. On the 4th, Kim Seon-ho, acting Minister of National Defense (Vice Minister), requested the Security Service to "operate the assigned guard unit in accordance with its mission."

Interpretations suggest that Kim's two statements to the Security Service are related to the declining trust in the military following the successive arrests of high-ranking military commanders involved in the December 3 emergency martial law. If the military appeared to sympathize with obstructing the execution of the arrest warrant against President Yoon, who is accused of leading a rebellion, the repercussions could be significant.

The Security Service denies the deployment of soldiers altogether. In a statement on the 3rd, the Security Service said, "The presidential residence area is a military protection facility where conscripted soldiers (55th Guard Unit) serve during peacetime, but in anticipation of escalating confrontation upon GongSuCheo's arrival, Security Service personnel replaced them," adding, "The soldiers were reassigned to rear-area duties."

On the 5th, the National Investigation Headquarters' Special Investigation Team for Emergency Martial Law (led by Woo Jong-su, head of the National Investigation Headquarters) questioned the commander of the 55th Guard Unit as a witness at an undisclosed location in Seoul. This was to investigate whether the 55th Guard Unit commander deployed soldiers to block GongSuCheo and the police.

Meanwhile, in November 2022, the Presidential Security Service, led by then-Chief Kim Yong-hyun, attempted to revise the Presidential Security Act enforcement decree to allow the Security Service to command and supervise military and police forces performing security duties, which sparked controversy. The opposition criticized it as a "revival of Chief Cha Ji-cheol." Following the controversy, the revision was shelved, and eventually, in May 2023, the original phrase "exercises command and supervision" was replaced with "may coordinate matters related to personnel, facilities, and equipment supporting security duties in consultation with heads of related agencies."