Did Chief of Staff Kang Hoonshik Visit Ukraine?... Presidential Office Says "Ukraine Not Included Among Countries Visited"

Kim Namjun Briefs Press on October 20

Kim Namjun, spokesperson, is briefing on the schedule of President Lee Jae-myung attending the opening ceremony of Seoul ADEX 2025 and the defense industry development forum held on the 20th at the Yongsan Presidential Office. Photo by Yonhap News

The Presidential Office has refuted claims from the opposition that Kang Hoonshik, Chief of Staff at the Presidential Office, visited Ukraine as a special envoy for defense industry cooperation, stating that "Ukraine was not included among the destinations."

Kim Namjun, spokesperson for the Presidential Office, made this statement on the afternoon of October 20 at the Yongsan Presidential Office in response to related questions. Kim emphasized, "Even disclosing which countries were visited could affect ongoing negotiations," adding, "It is difficult to specify each country visited."

Earlier, during the National Assembly's Climate, Energy, Environment, and Labor Committee audit, the ruling and opposition parties engaged in a heated debate over whether Korea Water Resources Corporation's reconstruction project in Ukraine was appropriate. During this process, Kim Hyungdong, a member of the People Power Party, mentioned that Chief Kang visited Ukraine to discuss defense exports.

Currently, Chief Kang is visiting European countries for defense industry cooperation in his capacity as the President's Special Envoy for Strategic Economic Cooperation.

Meanwhile, when asked about the United Nations Command suspending tours at Panmunjom and the possibility of a North Korea-United States summit, spokesperson Kim replied, "We are not in a position to know what actions the United Nations Command is taking or whether there are any scheduled North Korea-United States summits."