Sim Jae-cheol "Being isolated worldwide due to watching China's eyes... What will happen if even the US is blocked?"

Shim Jae-cheol, floor leader of the United Future Party, is attending the floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on the 6th and delivering a speech. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporters Lee Ji-eun and Kim Hye-min] Shim Jae-cheol, floor leader of the United Future Party, criticized that the number of countries restricting entry to South Korea due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) has reached 100, including Japan and Australia, saying, "We are being ostracized worldwide because we are trying to appease China."

At the floor leaders' meeting held at the National Assembly main building on the 6th, Shim said, "We cannot help but feel devastated seeing our citizens being rejected all over the globe."

Regarding Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-hwa's comment that "entry bans are crude measures by countries lacking quarantine capabilities," he pointed out, "Then are Japan and Australia backward countries without quarantine capabilities? They unanimously prioritize quarantine and the safety of their citizens over diplomacy, while we alone, trying to appease China, opened our doors and are now being ostracized by the world."

Shim added, "Judging by the trend of Koreaphobia, the United States might soon join in. If the US also blocks our citizens' entry, the damage would be unimaginable, so I hope the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will not just respond belatedly by talking about others' quarantine capabilities but will mobilize all possible diplomatic efforts before the US takes action."

Regarding the government's announcement yesterday to implement a five-day mask distribution system, he raised his voice, calling it "virtually a rationing system," and said, "As the president said, we have truly become a country that has never been experienced before."

Meanwhile, after the floor leaders' meeting on the same day, Shim met with reporters and said about the previous day's suspension of the National Assembly plenary session, "I spoke with floor leader Lee In-young about the problematic situation in the National Assembly, demanded an official apology from him, and agreed that the bill would be passed as is in the next session." He added, "He accepted that (apology), and that was how it ended, but I hope such incidents will not be repeated."

Regarding the rejection of the amendment to the Internet Specialized Bank Act, which broke the agreement between the ruling and opposition parties the day before, he said, "The agreement between the ruling and opposition parties was a full promise, and promises are meant to be kept, but it was completely ignored and unilaterally broken." He added, "I will further investigate today why the situation changed like this."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.