South Korea: Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun Apologizes and Resigns Amid Martial Law Crisis

Seoul, Dec 4 (NationPress) The Defence Minister of South Korea, Kim Yong-hyun, expressed his regret on Wednesday for the distress caused to the public regarding President Yoon Suk Yeol's controversial attempt to impose martial law and has tendered his resignation.

This decision followed President Yoon's sudden announcement of an emergency martial law late on Tuesday, which was quickly revoked just hours later after the opposition-controlled National Assembly voted against it, as reported by Yonhap news agency.

Kim stated, "I have submitted my intention to resign to the President, taking accountability for the chaos prompted by the declaration of martial law," in a statement given to the media.

It has been reported that Kim suggested the martial law declaration to President Yoon, emphasizing that he should bear the responsibility and that all military personnel who enforced the martial law were merely executing his orders.

Following the declaration, the military initiated a martial law command which issued a decree and mobilized approximately 280 martial law troops to the National Assembly grounds.

Kim assured that the ministry would remain in a state of alertness to protect national defence and public safety.

"Although martial law has been rescinded and citizens are gradually returning to their normal lives, the political landscape and security conditions domestically are still challenging," he noted.

"The defence ministry takes this matter very seriously and will exert all efforts to ensure that defence operations proceed smoothly while effectively managing the ongoing challenges," Kim added.

His apology came shortly after the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) proposed an impeachment motion against him.

The DP is expected to present this motion to a parliamentary plenary session on Thursday, alongside an impeachment motion for President Yoon Suk Yeol that was introduced earlier that day, which is set to be voted on later this week.

According to the law, an impeachment motion must be voted on within 24 to 72 hours after being presented to a plenary session.