Lee Jae-myung Responds to Foreign Reporter’s Question on 'Five Close Associates' Deaths' Saying "I Feel Regret"

Press Club Briefing on the 11th
Lee "I hope such incidents will no longer occur"
Emphasizes Inclusive Multilateral Diplomacy, Korean Peninsula Peace Policy, and Improvement of Korea-Japan Relations

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, expressed that he "feels regretful" regarding the deaths of five close aides during the prosecution investigation against him.

On the afternoon of the 11th, at a press conference held at the Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, Lee responded to a question from a Washington Times reporter asking, "Five of your close aides have died. Should Lee Jae-myung be considered a dangerous figure?"

Lee said, "I truly feel regretful that people around me passed away while undergoing prosecution investigations, especially since it was not their own issues but during the process of investigating me. I am in a state where I cannot have any influence over their deaths. I hope such incidents do not happen anymore."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

During the meeting, a question was also raised about Lee's stance on allegations of wiretapping by U.S. intelligence agencies at the Yongsan Presidential Office.

Lee stated, "This fact has been reported by the U.S. media, and since there is considerable evidence and grounds, for us, if this is true, it is a very disappointing situation that damages the trust-based Korea-U.S. alliance."

He added, "We hope, as the Korean government announced, that this is not true and is the result of document forgery, but considering the objective circumstances, it is difficult to exclude the possibility that wiretapping actually took place. From the Democratic Party's standpoint, we want to urge that the National Assembly conduct a thorough fact-finding investigation into the reality of the wiretapping, and if it is true, efforts should be made to prevent recurrence, obtain an apology from the U.S. government, and strengthen our government's measures against wiretapping."

Regarding questions about the trade deficit with China, Lee said, "The issue of exports to China is a serious situation," adding, "With Korea's high dependence on exports to China, the current deficit problem with China is causing a crisis and risk to the South Korean economy. While there may be aspects that the global economic situation is unavoidable, we cannot say that diplomatic circumstances have not affected trade and export issues."

He continued, "Since South Korea is located at the midpoint between the maritime powers of North Korea, China, and Russia and the continental powers, the principle of diplomacy and pragmatic diplomacy centered on national interests is very important," emphasizing, "The Korea-U.S. alliance and the Korea-China strategic cooperative partnership are not mutually exclusive. To overcome the economic situation, it is necessary to strengthen and implement the principle of pragmatic diplomacy centered on national interests."

A question was also asked about Lee's position on the withdrawal of the third-party compensation proposal for forced labor victims. A Nikkei Asia reporter asked, "If you come to power in the next presidential election, do you intend to nullify this?"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Lee replied, "We expected Japan to fill half of the glass and presented it with half filled, but in the end, the glass was overturned. If I had an answer to the question of what the solution is, this issue would not have come this far."

He added, "However, there are important principles. First, universal human rights must be respected, and the state does not have the authority to give up an individual's universal human rights." Lee further said, "Regarding aggression and human rights violations, it is desirable to clearly recognize historical facts mutually, apologize and reflect on the damages, and based on that, move forward in a future-oriented manner through appropriate understanding and agreement."

Before the Q&A session, Lee emphasized 'pragmatic diplomacy based on reality' in his keynote speech.

He mentioned ▲inclusive multilateral diplomacy ▲protection of domestic industries from protectionism and discrimination ▲establishment of peace on the Korean Peninsula.

Regarding the upcoming Korea-U.S. summit on the 26th, Lee said, "The core issue is to correct discrimination against semiconductors, which are the lifeblood of the South Korean economy," adding, "We must clearly demand the relaxation of subsidy application requirements under the Semiconductor Support Act and the extension of the exemption from export restrictions on equipment to Korean companies' semiconductor factories in China."

Regarding the current government's diplomacy from the perspective of 'national interest-centered pragmatic diplomacy,' Lee said, "The majority of our people seem to judge it as 'unsatisfactory,'" and added, "The results of the Korea-Japan summit were very disappointing from the perspective of our people's expectations, so I hope that at this Korea-U.S. summit, at least a balanced national interest can be secured in issues such as semiconductors, batteries, and electric vehicles."

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