The promise of a new year brought no end to the turmoil that has upended South Korea since early December, with recent efforts by anti-corruption officials to detain impeached president Yoon Suk Yeol stymied by Yoon’s supporters and his Presidential Security Service.
South Korea’s Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) is seeking to detain Yoon in relation to insurrection and abuse of power charges against the suspended president. Yoon declared martial law on December 3, sparking fear and loathing across much of the political spectrum. He lifted the order six hours later, following a vote by the National Assembly.
On Friday, presidential bodyguards blocked anti-corruption officials from reaching Yoon, who, at the time of writing, was sealed off inside his presidential residence.
The CIO then tapped police to carry out the warrant but backtracked a few hours later. The CIO’s chief prosecutor told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday that: "We will prepare for the execution of a warrant as if the second attempt is the last one.”
Yoon’s followers have brandished “Stop the Steal” signs and American flags outside his residence in an apparent appeal to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. These protest symbols are a nod to what demonstrators believe was fraud in the country's most recent parliamentary election, which Yoon’s party lost handily.
One protester told Agence France-Presse that, "we believe [martial law] was an exercise of Yoon's legitimate presidential authority to combat electoral fraud.” South Korea’s electoral commission has discovered no evidence of fraud in the 2024 election.
Many is the head that wears the crown
Yoon’s replacement, Han Duck-soo, was acting president for less than two weeks before he, too, was impeached by the National Assembly over his refusal to fill three vacancies on the country’s Constitutional Court — the body responsible for upholding or dismissing Yoon’s impeachment.
Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok is now the country’s acting president and has been working to restore investor and consumer confidence in South Korea. The South Korean won is trading at its lowest levels since the 2008 financial crisis. The country’s finance ministry also recently downgraded its GDP projections for 2025 from 2.2 per cent to 1.8 per cent. Inflation, however, remains low, and the unemployment rate stands at roughly 2.2 per cent.
Choi met with outgoing U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken this week. Blinken expressed condolences over the tragic Jeju Airlines crash, and reiterated that “the U.S. stands ready to support the ROK during this difficult time.” Blinken’s final trip abroad — an attempt to cement the Biden administration’s foreign policy accomplishments — spans South Korea, Japan, France, Italy, and the Holy See.
Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, was dispatched to India. Sullivan delivered a speech on Monday, predicting that the “[U.S.-India] partnership will be the most consequential of the 21st century.”
Trouble at home
South Korea is not the only democracy reckoning with high political drama. On Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his intention to resign as Liberal Party leader and prime minister once a leadership contest is concluded.
Multiple media outlets have reported that Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly is a potential contender to replace Trudeau. If Joly enters the leadership race, it's unclear whether she would have to resign from cabinet, or if her energies and attention would be split between pursuing Ottawa's interests abroad (including, this year, Canada's G7 presidency) and drumming up support for her leadership bid.
The G7 leaders’ summit is scheduled for June 15–17 in Kananaskis, Alberta.
