Proposal for Meeting with Moon, Yoon's Side Responds: "Closely Communicating on Blue House Meeting" (Comprehensive)

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol holds a plaque ceremony with Ahn Cheol-soo, the chairman of the transition committee, Kwon Young-se, the vice chairman, and other attendees at the transition committee office set up at the Financial Supervisory Service Training Institute in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the 18th. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

The office of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol stated on the 18th that they are "communicating closely based on mutual trust" regarding the meeting with President Moon Jae-in.

Kim Eun-hye, spokesperson for the President-elect, said in a press release that "President Moon and President-elect Yoon are communicating closely based on mutual trust regarding the meeting at the Blue House and we will strive to deliver a desirable outcome for the people."

Originally, President Moon and President-elect Yoon were scheduled to meet on the 16th, but the meeting was canceled. This was due to discord arising as the working-level consultations between Lee Cheol-hee, Senior Secretary for Political Affairs at the Blue House, and Jang Je-won, Chief of Staff for the President-elect, were not finalized.

As a result, political circles speculated that the two sides have not narrowed their differences over key issues such as the pardon of former President Lee Myung-bak and personnel appointments including the Governor of the Bank of Korea.

The President-elect’s side issuing a statement that they are "communicating closely" is interpreted as a response to the Blue House’s proposal for a meeting earlier that morning.

Park Kyung-mi, spokesperson for the Blue House, conveyed in a briefing that President Moon said regarding the meeting with President-elect Yoon, "It is the duty to the people to have an open and candid conversation as soon as possible."

President Moon also mentioned, "The door of the Blue House is always open," and added, "I do not think any special coordination is necessary for the meeting."

Since President Moon hinted that any topic can be discussed with President-elect Yoon’s side, there is analysis that a date for the meeting could be set soon.

As prolonged confrontation between the new and old powers would be burdensome for both President Moon and President-elect Yoon, there is a possibility that consultations will be held. Some speculate that the two sides may have already reached some degree of consensus on major issues behind the scenes.

Meanwhile, President Moon instructed his close aides on the same day not to express individual opinions on the President-elect’s pledges or plans for national governance. This means refraining from revealing personal views through social media or the press.

This is interpreted as a reprimand directed at Protocol Secretary Tak Hyun-min, who criticized President-elect Yoon’s pledge to relocate the Blue House the day before. In a Facebook post, Secretary Tak wrote, "If we are not going to use this place (the Blue House), can’t we just use it?" and added, "We will gather good people and manage it well."

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