South Korean ruling party to fight Yoon impeachment, defence minister quits

South Korean opposition lawmakers said on Thursday they would vote this weekend to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over a botched attempt to impose martial law, while the defense minister blamed for advising the move resigned.

Yoon's declaration of martial law late on Tuesday attempted to ban political activity and censor the media in Asia's fourth-largest economy and a key U.S. ally. It sparked outrage in the streets and concern among its international allies.

Lawmakers from the opposition Democratic Party planned to put up a vote in parliament to impeach Yoon at around 7 p.m. (1000 GMT) on Saturday, a party spokesperson told reporters.

"The Yoon Suk Yeol regime's declaration of emergency martial law caused great confusion and fear among our people," Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Seung-won told the National Assembly in an early morning session.

The wife of a South Korean marine veteran, gets her head shaved during a rally demanding South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's removal from power, in front of the presidential office, in Seoul, South Korea, December 5, 2024Reuters

Ruling party divided over impeachment

Yoon's ruling People Power Party is divided over the crisis but said it would oppose impeachment with two years left in Yoon's five-year term.

The Democratic Party needs at least eight of the 108 ruling-party lawmakers to back the bill for it to pass with a two-thirds majority of the 300-seat parliament.

Fighting for his political future, Yoon accepted the resignation of Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun on Thursday and nominated his ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Choi Byung-hyuk, as a replacement, Yoon's office said.

People watch a TV screen broadcasting a news report on South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of martial law and the following announcement that he will lift the martial law, after parliamentary vote, at a railway station in Seoul, South Korea, December 4, 2024Reuters

Kim had recommended Yoon declare martial law on Tuesday, according to the interior minister, a senior military official and the filing to impeach Yoon by opposition members.

Kim also ordered the deployment of troops to the parliament, Vice-Defence Minister Kim Seon-ho said, adding he was unaware of the martial law order until Yoon declared it.

"I have fundamentally opposed the mobilization of military forces under martial law and have expressed negative opinions about it," he told a parliament hearing on Thursday, apologizing and taking responsibility for failing to prevent it.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Japan's "security situation may be fundamentally changed" in light of the instability in Seoul and North Korea's rising military assertiveness.

"What will happen to South Korea? There appears to be a great deal of domestic criticism and opposition," he told parliament on Thursday, adding that Yoon's efforts to improve relations with Tokyo "must never be undermined”.

There has been no reaction yet from North Korea to the drama in the South.

US 'not aware'

Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Reuters on Wednesday the United States had not been made aware in advance of Yoon's declaration, while his deputy, Kurt Campbell, said Yoon had badly misjudged it.

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

The commander of U.S. Forces-Korea, General Paul LaCamera, warned American troops to exercise vigilance, avoid areas with protests, and to communicate travel plans to their supervisors in case "something unexpected" occurs.

Yoon had been embraced by leaders in the West as a partner in the U.S.-led effort to unify democracies against growing authoritarianism in China, Russia and elsewhere.

But he caused unease among South Koreans by branding his critics as "communist totalitarian and anti-state forces". In November, he denied wrongdoing in response to influence-peddling allegations against him and his wife and he has taken a hard line against labour unions.

The impeachment follows a night of chaos after Yoon declared martial law and armed troops attempted to force their way into the National Assembly building in Seoul, only to stand back when parliamentary aides sprayed them with fire extinguishers.

Global markets rattled

The martial law crisis rattled global financial markets and South Korea's benchmark KOSPI index .KS11. Currency dealers reported suspected state intervention on Wednesday to keep the won stable.

Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok sent an emergency note to global financial chiefs and credit rating agencies late on Wednesday to say the ministry was working to alleviate any adverse impact from political turmoil.

Currency dealers work in front of an electronic board showing the Korean Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) in the dealing room of a bank in Seoul, South Korea, December 5, 2024. Reuters

If the impeachment bill passes, South Korea's Constitutional Court will then decide whether to uphold the motion – a process that could take up to 180 days.

If Yoon were to be suspended from exercising power, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo would fill in as leader.

If the embattled president resigned or was removed from office, a new election would be held within 60 days.

Yoon, a career prosecutor, squeezed out a victory in the tightest presidential election in South Korean history in 2022, riding a wave of discontent over economic policy, scandals and gender wars.

But his support ratings have been at around 20% for months and the opposition captured nearly two-thirds of seats in parliament in an April election.