Key Points

While Yoon survived an impeachment vote in parliament on Saturday, his party’s decision to delegate presidential authority to the prime minister has plunged the key US ally into a constitutional crisis.
The main opposition party, the Democratic Party, has called for Yoon to be stripped of authority to control the military.
The DP also demanded the arrest of Yoon and any military officers involved in the martial law fiasco.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has been banned from leaving the country over a failed attempt to impose martial law, a Justice Ministry official said on Monday, amid growing calls for him to resign and a growing leadership crisis. deeper.

Yoon apologized for the failed attempt and said he was leaving his political and legal fate to his ruling People Power Party (PPP), but did not resign. According to local media reports, he has become the subject of a criminal investigation.

On Monday, the Defense Ministry said Yoon was still legally commander-in-chief, but his grip on power has been thrown into doubt due to growing dissent among senior military officers against the president, and his own party said it would establish a group of job to handle his eventual presidency. resignation.

Oh Dong-woon, head of the Corruption Investigation Bureau for Senior Officials, said he had ordered a foreign travel ban for Yoon, when asked at a hearing in parliament what actions had been taken against the embattled president.

A Justice Ministry official, Bae Sang-up, told the committee that the travel ban order had been carried out.

The panel was established in 2021 to investigate high-ranking officials, including the president and his family members, but does not have the authority to prosecute the president. Instead, you are required by law to refer the matter to the prosecutor’s office.

While Yoon survived an impeachment vote in parliament on Saturday, his party’s decision to delegate presidential authority to the prime minister has plunged the key US ally into a constitutional crisis.

Yoon has rejected calls, including from within his own ruling party, for him to resign, and his future looked more uncertain over the weekend when the Yonhap news agency reported that he was under criminal investigation for alleged treason.

Prosecutors on Sunday arrested former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun for his alleged role in declaring martial law on December 3, Yonhap reported.

Yoon granted the military sweeping emergency powers on Dec. 3 to root out what he called “anti-state forces” and obstructionist political opponents. He rescinded the order six hours later, after parliament defied military and police cordons to vote unanimously against the decree.

Amid the backlash, several military officials, including the acting defense minister, have said they would not follow any new order to reimpose martial law.

The main opposition party, the Democratic Party, has called for Yoon to be stripped of authority to control the military. The DP also demanded the arrest of Yoon and any military officers involved in the martial law fiasco.

Yoon’s People Power Party (PPP) had created a working group to address, among other issues, “political stabilization after martial law and (Yoon’s) early and orderly resignation,” a spokesperson said Monday.

On Sunday, PPP leader Han Dong-hoon said the president would be excluded from foreign affairs and other state affairs, and that Prime Minister Han Duck-soo would manage government affairs until Yoon finally resigned.

That proposal has generated criticism from the opposition, which says it is unconstitutional. He says Yoon should be impeached or resign and face legal proceedings, and he plans to introduce another impeachment bill on Saturday.

Chang Young-soo, a professor at Korea University School of Law, said the president can delegate authority to the prime minister, especially control of the military, but there is debate over whether the prime minister has the authority to act as chief. of government. State in diplomatic affairs.

“Furthermore, unlike an American vice president, a South Korean prime minister is not elected, meaning democratic legitimacy is weak. Therefore, it will also be a question of how long this system can continue,” he said.

Military backlash

Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung warned on Monday that the political crisis threatened to cause irreversible damage to Asia’s fourth-largest economy, the world’s top supplier of memory chips.

South Korea’s Finance Ministry and regulators said they would make every effort to stabilize financial markets by deploying contingency plans and increasing liquidity by the end of December.

In the latest sign of dissent within military ranks, the commander of South Korea’s special forces said he was ordered last week to send his troops to parliament to stop a vote to reject martial law.

Col. Kim Hyun-tae, commander of the 707th Special Missions Group, told reporters that he took responsibility for his troops’ actions but was acting under orders from then-Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun.

“We were all victims used by the former defense minister,” the colonel told reporters outside the Defense Ministry in Seoul.

He said he had not told the military about his plan to speak to the media for fear of being detained.

Yoon’s decision to declare a state of emergency and grant sweeping powers to the military sparked street protests and raised alarm among Seoul’s allies.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin scrapped his plans to travel to South Korea and Secretary of State Antony Blinken called his South Korean counterpart and said he hoped the democratic process would prevail.

The United States has 28,500 troops stationed in South Korea as a legacy of the 1950-1953 Korean War.

The unrest in Seoul comes at an important geopolitical moment in the region, with North Korea reportedly sending troops to help Russia’s war against Ukraine amid growing military ties between Moscow and Pyongyang.

South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul said he “cannot help but feel sad” because the incident occurred at a time of increasing security threats facing the country.