South Korea could face months of political turmoil after President Yun Seok-yeol failed to impose martial law in an extraordinary night of drama in Seoul.
Yoon announced martial law for the first time in more than 40 years in a live televised speech late on Tuesday night, but reversed course six hours later after parliament ignored the efforts of police and special forces and voted to block the move.
About 190 of the 300 National Assembly members gathered within hours to overturn the president's order, and Mr Yoon said shortly after that he would convene a cabinet meeting to accept the National Assembly's demand and end martial law.
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Yoon issued a statement around 4 a.m. local time, calling on parliamentary opponents to stop “reckless actions that have paralyzed the country's functions, including repeated impeachment attempts, legislative manipulation, and budget manipulation.”
South Korea has been in a political deadlock for months since the liberal opposition Democratic Party won a parliamentary majority in April. Tensions between the two sides escalated when the opposition decided to cut the state budget and launch impeachment proceedings against cabinet members accused of corruption.
Trump, who seeks to make his country a “global hub”, faced serious domestic and international repercussions for his actions on Wednesday, which analysts said appeared to be an attempt to resolve a political standoff with the opposition.
South Koreans have painful memories of the country's authoritarian past, and Yoon's actions seemed to shock the entire country. his support rate It has fallen below 20% in recent weeks.
Calls for the president's resignation are growing, and six opposition parties have moved to impeach Yun after his brief imposition of martial law sparked widespread backlash, including criticism from members of his own party.
South Korean Prime Minister Han Deok-soo pledged to serve the people until the crisis is over and takes “full responsibility for all events leading up to this moment… [and] Ensure national stability.
Lawmakers are likely to vote in the coming days on a bill submitted to the National Assembly calling for the president's impeachment.
However, according to international organization Kenneth Choi, this process can take up to three months. Chosun Ilbo editor told CNN Parliament must appoint new judges because the Constitutional Court does not have enough numbers to rule on the case – at least six judges must uphold such a decision.
Military exercises, talks with allies postponed
At the same time, there are fears that political unrest will deter foreign investors and disrupt diplomatic arrangements.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, who was scheduled to hold a summit with Yoon Eun-hye this week, will cancel the planned visit, his spokesman said on Wednesday.
“In light of recent developments, we have decided to postpone the visit,” a spokesman said in a statement.
The United States, South Korea's main ally, has postponed indefinitely a meeting of the Nuclear Consultative Group and related tabletop military exercises, a U.S. official said on condition of anonymity.
The NCG is Yun's signature effort to give South Korea a greater role in allied planning for a potential nuclear war on the peninsula.
About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea, and it is unclear whether other joint military exercises will be affected. A spokesman for U.S. Forces Korea did not respond to a request for comment.
The Pentagon said on Tuesday that the U.S. and South Korean militaries were “in contact,” adding that Seoul had not made a request for assistance as the situation unfolded.
Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder told a news conference that he also did not believe martial law had had any significant impact so far on U.S. troops, some of whom are under joint command with South Korean troops.
A White House spokesman earlier said the United States had received no advance notice of Yoon's announcement, adding: “We are seriously concerned about the developments we are seeing on the ground.”
Martial law casts doubt on the possibility of a visit by U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin next week. Japanese media reported that he would meet with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts as part of a trilateral effort championed by Yoon.
Akihisa Nagashima, special adviser to the Japanese Prime Minister, was originally scheduled to accompany him, and a group of Japanese parliamentarians on Korea affairs led by former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga canceled a planned visit to Seoul in mid-December.
“The turmoil in South Korea's domestic politics since last night remains worrying,” Nagashima wrote in a post on X.
“This is a tense situation and the fate of Yoon's government must be closely watched to see if it can overcome the public backlash.”
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba earlier told reporters that Tokyo was monitoring the situation “with special and strong interest.”
Duyeon Kim of the Center for a New American Security said Yin's international reputation as a symbol of democracy has been destroyed.
“The fate of Yin's foreign policy remains uncertain, even bleak,” she added.
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