South Korea’s impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol skipped questioning by a joint investigation team on Wednesday, according to local media reports, increasing the risk of his arrest.
Yoon didn’t appear for a scheduled 10 a.m. questioning by the joint team, which consists of the defense ministry, police and an anti-corruption investigative body, according to SBS. The investigators will consider sending a second summons, the broadcaster reported.
South Korea’s parliament voted on Saturday to impeach Yoon, suspending him from office after his shocking declaration of martial law earlier this month sparked a constitutional crisis. Yoon vowed to never give up, signaling his intent to fight in court to retain his job and contending his martial-law decree was within his constitutional powers.
Investigative officials are seeking to question Yoon over the opposition’s allegations that he committed treason. Another team, led by prosecutors, has also been trying to summon Yoon and requested for him to appear on Saturday.
Yoon’s lawyer told the media on Tuesday that he has not completed assembling his defense team and will make a statement in the coming days about the investigation agencies’ request for his appearance. The lawyer also said investigative agencies appear to be competing to issue summons and attendance requests, and this situation needs to be addressed.
On Wednesday, the prosecutors’ office said it will transfer Yoon’s case to the anti-corruption investigative body to prevent duplicate probes, though the office will retain the authority to indict the president, according to Yonhap News.
Two South Korean ministers held a joint briefing on Wednesday, with Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul saying Yoon’s martial law declaration has made it difficult for the country to maintain its diplomatic momentum with the US ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration.
“This turmoil has weakened the political momentum that has been built up, and it will take time to recover,” Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul said Thursday at a press conference.
Yoon has been suspended from office since the opposition-controlled parliament impeached him on Saturday, and the Constitutional Court is now reviewing the case. Before his impeachment, Yoon led the reinforcement of security and economic ties with the US.
“It is also undeniable that there are certain constraints that come from the suspension of the president,” Cho said. South Korea is working hard to restore the momentum as soon as possible under the constraints, he added.
Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok said at the same briefing that the government seeks to front-load its budget spending in the first half of next year to bolster the economy amid the political turmoil.
The government will “mobilize fiscal resources including those for public institutions, private investment, policy financing and so on,” Choi said. “We will also prepare additional measures to support vulnerable populations.”
Yoon rattled financial markets after imposing and then quickly retracting martial law earlier this month. His actions have sparked political uncertainty, which could add to economic risks as policymakers worry about the impact of Trump’s tariff plans on their trade-reliant economy.
With assistance from Sam Kim and Elaine To/Bloomberg
Image credits: Bloomberg
