Yoon Sang-hyun's Remarks on "Yoon's Release and Conditional Nuclear Armament"... Opposition Reacts, "Stay with Jeon Gwang-hoon's Party"

National Assembly Interpellation on Politics, Diplomacy, Unification, and Security
Yoon Sang-hyun: "Prosecution Complicit in HOCI's Unlawful Investigation"
Also Criticizes Constitutional Court: "Rushed Impeachment Trial, Anti-Constitutional Court"
"Sophisticated North Korean Nuclear Program May Lead US to Recognize It as a Nuclear State"
Cho Tae-yeol: "The US Will Never Recognize That"

On the 12th, Yoon Sang-hyun, a member of the People Power Party, argued that the prosecution should cancel the detention of President Yoon Seok-yeol, whose detention extension was previously denied at the prosecution stage. He also suggested that if North Korea possesses intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) reentry technology, the United States might recognize North Korea's nuclear status and shift its policy toward preventing proliferation, and thus South Korea should also consider conditional nuclear armament. In response, opposition party lawmakers reacted strongly, saying, "Why is he in the People Power Party when he belongs to Jeon Kwang-hoon’s party?"

During the afternoon session of the government questioning on politics, diplomacy, unification, and security held at the National Assembly, Yoon asked Kim Seok-woo, acting Minister of Justice, "The prosecution once applied for an extension of the detention warrant for the president at the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Office (HOCI), but it was denied. Have you ever seen a case where an extension was applied for again after being denied?"

When Acting Minister Kim replied, "It is not something that happens every time," Yoon pressed, "Then shouldn't the detention warrant be canceled? Shouldn't the president be released?"

In response, Acting Minister Kim said, "Whether extending detention and maintaining detention are appropriate are separate issues, so I think the investigation team will judge them separately. The defendant’s side has applied for cancellation of detention, and a hearing is scheduled for the 20th, so I think the court will make a provisional judgment," he answered.

Regarding the charge of rebellion, which is the reason for President Yoon’s detention, Yoon asked, "Is the emergency martial law declared on December 3rd considered rebellion?" and "Common sense tells us that would a president incite a riot with the intent to disrupt the constitutional order?" Acting Minister Kim responded cautiously, "That issue is something the court will ultimately decide based on the revealed facts rather than common sense," and "Since the charge of rebellion has been filed and a trial is scheduled, I cannot make a definitive statement."

Yoon further questioned about the 'requirements for declaring martial law,' 'the exclusive authority to declare martial law,' and 'whether the HOCI has investigative authority over rebellion charges,' stating, "The HOCI’s illegal investigation has been joined by the prosecution, which is very regrettable."

Yoon Sang-hyun, a member of the People Power Party, is speaking against the impeachment of President Yoon Seok-yeol during the government questioning session on politics, diplomacy, unification, and security held at the National Assembly on the 12th. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

He also criticized the Constitutional Court’s hearing process as unfair. Yoon claimed that the Constitutional Court is not applying the Criminal Procedure Act during the hearing of President Yoon and "does not guarantee even the minimum right to defense." When Yoon asked, "Since the Criminal Procedure Act was amended in 2020, what should be done when the defendant objects to the prosecution’s statement?" Acting Minister Kim replied, "Basically, evidence from the investigation is considered inadmissible if the defendant does not agree."

He continued, "According to Article 51 of the Constitutional Court Act, when a criminal trial and an impeachment trial are conducted simultaneously for the same case, the impeachment trial can be suspended. However, it is not suspended and is proceeding rapidly with a rushed hearing." He also raised his voice, saying, "People are calling the Constitutional Court our court, an anti-constitutional court. Please restore the Constitutional Court properly."

Following Yoon’s remarks, opposition lawmakers demanded Speaker Woo Won-shik to take disciplinary action, saying, "He is saying in the National Assembly plenary session that the Constitutional Court is an untrustworthy institution, but why is there no sanction?" and "Isn’t this grounds for disciplinary action? Isn’t this a complete insult to the National Assembly?" Speaker Woo calmed the opposition lawmakers by saying, "Even if it is unpleasant to hear, listening is a matter of courtesy."

Yoon also advocated conditional nuclear armament to address the North Korean nuclear issue. He told Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yeol, "Former President Donald Trump referred to North Korea as a 'Nuclear Power.' If North Korea’s nuclear missile capabilities become advanced militarily, we have no choice but to recognize it as a nuclear power." Minister Cho firmly replied, "There is no way to recognize that."

Yoon asked again, "If North Korea acquires ICBM reentry technology and gains the capability to strike anywhere, whether New York or Los Angeles, at will, how would the United States respond?" He added, "Then wouldn’t the U.S. likely move toward freezing North Korea’s nuclear program and preventing proliferation rather than complete denuclearization? Isn’t it highly likely that the U.S. would shift to freezing and preventing proliferation rather than dismantling North Korea’s nuclear weapons?"

Minister Cho avoided giving a direct answer, saying, "I do not want to make premature judgments." When asked about the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ stance on limited nuclear armament considering U.S. recognition of North Korea’s nuclear status, he dismissed it, saying, "It is premature to talk about that. We must fully pursue North Korea’s complete denuclearization."

Regarding the opposition parties, including the Democratic Party, including content hostile to North Korea and Russia in the first impeachment motion against President Yoon, Yoon asked, "Is the president’s foreign policy grounds for impeachment?" and "During the Moon Jae-in administration, there was submissive diplomacy toward North Korea, China, and Russia, and we were deceived by North Korea’s disguised peace to advocate lifting sanctions. Is that grounds for impeachment?" Minister Cho replied, "I think it is inappropriate, and I understand it was later removed from the impeachment motion."

Yoon also labeled past remarks by Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, and the Democratic Party such as "The Korean Peninsula will be dirtied again by the Self-Defense Forces’ boots through the South Korea-U.S.-Japan drills," "Abolish the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD)," "China’s she-she," and "Fukushima discharge is the second Pacific War, nuclear wastewater" as "rumors and propaganda." Opposition lawmakers shouted in protest intermittently during Yoon’s remarks and protested even as he left the podium after finishing his questions.

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