Lee Nak-yeon on Yoon's 'Anti-State Forces' Remark: "Violent Language... Must Apologize"

President Yoon's Apology and Call for Staff Accountability
"Establishing a Peace Regime on the Korean Peninsula Is an Agreed Matter"

Former Prime Minister under the Moon Jae-in administration and former leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, Lee Nak-yeon, criticized President Yoon Suk-yeol's remark about 'anti-state forces' on the 30th, calling it a "truly perilous and violent statement" and asking, "What is the country heading towards with such reckless behavior?"

On the same day, Lee posted on his Facebook, stating, "The president should promptly apologize to the people and hold his aides accountable," and pointed out, "No matter how unprepared the administration was, isn't it time to improve now?"

Former leader of the Democratic Party Lee Nak-yeon is seen moving toward the grave of the late former President Kim Dae-jung at the National Seoul Memorial Cemetery in Dongjak-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 28th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Lee said, "The declaration of the end of the war, or more fundamentally, the establishment of a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula, is an issue agreed upon multiple times between South and North Korea and between North Korea and the United States," adding, "It was included in the South-North Basic Agreement during the conservative Roh Tae-woo administration and the Joint Declaration on the Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and the fact that the declaration of the end of the war is unrelated to the U.S. Forces Korea or the United Nations Command was also confirmed by the leaders of South and North Korea."

He then questioned, "If pushing for the declaration of the end of the war is labeled as 'anti-state forces,' does that mean the agreements between South and North Korea and between North Korea and the U.S. are being completely denied and criminalized?"

He continued, "The president is constitutionally mandated to strive for peaceful reunification," and said, "The declaration of the end of the war was discussed and agreed upon as part of efforts toward peace on the Korean Peninsula. If that is considered 'anti-state' activity, how does the president intend to regard the constitution?"

Regarding the presidential office's explanation that President Yoon's remark was a "general statement" not aimed at the previous government or any specific political faction, Lee rebutted, "If the president thinks he can use words like 'anti-state forces' as a 'general' term in official events, that is also a serious problem."

Lee criticized, "Including expressions that all media could interpret as targeting the previous government in the president's official remarks reflects either the presidential office's dangerous mindset or ignorance and insensitive incompetence," and questioned, "How many times has the president had to belatedly retract his wrong statements?"

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