Park Ji-won "Good to Cancel Meeting Due to Heavy Rain... Would Have Been Subject to Gossip"

Regarding the postponement of the meeting between former Democratic Party leader Lee Nak-yeon and current Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung, which was scheduled for the previous day but delayed due to a heavy rain warning, former National Intelligence Service Director Park Ji-won positively evaluated the decision, saying "It was good to cancel the meeting."

On the 12th, on KBS's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strongest Current Affairs,' former Director Park said, "If the heavy rain had caused problems and the two had met, they would have faced criticism again."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Lee, who returned to Korea at the end of last month, visited the graves of former Presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun and also met with former President Moon Jae-in, but has yet to meet with Lee Jae-myung. Former Director Park has repeatedly stated that the two should meet as soon as possible.

He said, "They must meet. Why go on local trips?" and added, "When they visited Presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun, those two probably stood up quickly and told them to meet soon. They would have said, 'Join hands and go among the people to fight against the ruling party. Can we leave the Yoon Seok-youl administration as it is?'"

He continued, "They should quickly meet, communicate, join hands, and go among the people to engage in opposition struggles. This is the way for the Democratic Party to survive. If they start saying, as the sparrows do now, 'Why meet the person who caused the presidential election defeat? Why meet Lee Jae-myung?' then that path leads to the Democratic Party that President Yoon Seok-youl desires."

He emphasized that unity should come first, followed by innovation. He said, "We must innovate while uniting. The act of uniting itself is the greatest innovation for the Democratic Party, and becoming a strong Democratic Party is the most urgent innovation. Who benefits if we do not unite, split up, and point fingers at each other?"

Regarding Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Sang-min's remarks suggesting a possible party split, such as a 'pleasant breakup,' he said, "Talking about division is not the issue. If the party splits, they will perish; everyone will die," raising his voice, "If they die, that becomes the Democratic Party that President Yoon Seok-youl desires."

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