Kim Tae-hyo Emerging as Top Diplomat... Opposition Says "Way of Thinking Is Very Dangerous"

Kim Tae-hyo "No Malice in US Wiretapping" Remarks Fallout
Lee Eon-ju "Pro-Japanese Thesis... Not Aligned with Public Sentiment"

Amid controversy over allegations of U.S. intelligence agency wiretapping, Kim Tae-hyo, the First Deputy Director of the National Security Office, stated that "there is no evidence that the U.S. acted with malice," sparking further debate. Concerns are also being raised about Kim's foreign policy perspective.

With Kim holding the lead in the fields of diplomacy and security, his foreign policy views are causing apprehension. Former Minister of Unification Chung Dong-young criticized, "(Kim) is a proponent of the North Korea collapse theory and believes in the imminent U.S.-China clash theory," adding, "His way of thinking is extremely dangerous."

On the 19th, during KBS Radio's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strongest Current Affairs,' former Minister Chung said, "It seems he views our national interest as simply following what the U.S. and Japan want," and expressed concern, "Japan illegally claims Dokdo is occupied by South Korea; how can we maintain an alliance with Japan? Japan has forcibly colonized Korea for 35 years, abducted comfort women, and carried out forced labor, yet refuses to acknowledge these facts. How can we speak of an alliance with such a country? This is a very dangerous mindset."

Kim Tae-hyo, the First Deputy Director of the National Security Office, who completed his visit to Washington, USA, is seen answering questions from reporters after arriving through Terminal 2 of Incheon International Airport on the afternoon of the 15th. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Former Minister Chung also referred to Kim's past academic papers. Previously, when Kim was appointed as a member of the Presidential Transition Committee's foreign affairs and security subcommittee, it was revealed that he authored a paper advocating for the role of Japan's Self-Defense Forces in a contingency on the Korean Peninsula, which sparked controversy. Chung stated, "Having a conviction based on studying Japan's Self-Defense Forces and pushing for a U.S.-Japan-South Korea alliance will lead us down an unfortunate path."

He continued, "President Yoon Suk-yeol needs to open his ears more and listen to the opposition, dissenters, and advocates of peace diplomacy on the Korean Peninsula," adding, "Almost all of them will point out the risks, and ultimately, the solution is personnel changes."

Former People Power Party lawmaker Lee Eon-ju also commented that day, saying, "It seems Kim Tae-hyo has won after various power struggles," and evaluated, "Everything related to security and diplomacy is in Kim Tae-hyo's hands." On the YouTube channel 'Kim Eo-jun's Humility is Difficult News Factory,' Lee criticized, "(Kim's) past papers are very pro-Japanese," and said, "They do not align at all with the current sentiments of our people."

Members of the National Assembly's Steering Committee, Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, National Defense Committee, and Intelligence Committee, including Kim Byung-joo and Jin Sung-jun of the Democratic Party of France, hold related placards at a press conference demanding the dismissal of Kim Tae-hyo, the first deputy director of the National Security Office, regarding the illegal U.S. wiretapping incident held near the Presidential Office in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 17th. Photo by Yonhap News

Meanwhile, the opposition party demanded Kim's dismissal, accusing him of defending the U.S. amid the wiretapping controversy, but the Blue House expressed a negative stance. On the 18th, Park Hong-geun, the Democratic Party floor leader, said at a floor meeting, "The U.S. White House admitted from the start that there is 'no excuse' for the document leak, but Kim Tae-hyo, the First Deputy Director, hastily defended the U.S. position?the party responsible for the wiretapping?with baseless logic," and raised his voice, "The minimum duty to the people is to dismiss Kim Tae-hyo, who has harmed our national interest and security."

Regarding the Blue House's effective refusal to dismiss him, he said, "'Ignoring the people's solemn order to rectify the successive failures of the Yoon Suk-yeol security line,'" and added, "Considering that one axis of the controversy leading to the resignation of key foreign affairs and security personnel just before the South Korea-U.S. summit was the power struggle between former National Security Office Director Kim Sung-han and Deputy Director Kim Tae-hyo, Kim's arrogant attitude of telling the media 'Do not ask the same questions' did not come out of nowhere."

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