Reuters reported that on December 9, Colonel Kim Hyun-tae, commander of South Korea's 707th Special Mission Force, spoke out about his role in the raid on the parliament building last week. Mr. Kim said that his force received orders from Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun to surround the parliament building to prevent lawmakers from voting to lift martial law.
During the mission, the task force encountered resistance from lawmakers inside the building. Mr. Kim stressed that his team members were only following orders and should not be blamed. In particular, he expressed dissatisfaction when he realized that he and his soldiers had become “victims” of wrong decisions from their superiors.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law on December 3. However, just hours later, he had to withdraw the decision after the National Assembly held a vote declaring martial law invalid.
On December 7, Mr. Yoon survived an impeachment vote initiated by opposition lawmakers in the National Assembly, but the event plunged South Korea into a serious constitutional crisis. However, Mr. Yoon did not issue any resignation statement, instead affirming that he would entrust his fate to the ruling party.
Former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun was arrested on December 8 for his role in declaring martial law and ordering the deployment of troops to parliament.
The leader of the ruling People's Power Party (PPP), Han Dong-hoon, announced that President Yoon would not be involved in state affairs or foreign affairs, while asserting that the government would be run by the ruling party and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo.
However, National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik said that transferring power from the president without going through the impeachment process is unconstitutional. Meanwhile, the opposition Democratic Party, which led the failed impeachment effort on December 7, said it would continue to propose impeachment again.
