What Did Kim Dong-yeon Say at the 'Davos Forum' Media Briefing?

Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon briefed global media leaders on Korea's political and economic situation at the Swiss 'Davos Forum' on the 21st (local time). This media leader briefing is the first in 12 years since former President Park Geun-hye in 2013.

At the 'Conversation with Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon' session, organized by the World Economic Forum (WEF), the host of the Davos Forum, Kim explained Korea's situation to about 20 editors-in-chief, correspondents, and diplomatic reporters from global broadcasters, newspapers, and news agencies from the US, UK, China, UAE, Malaysia, and others.

In his opening remarks, Governor Kim said, "The position of Gyeonggi Province Governor is politically influential, as it requires the second-highest number of votes after the president to be elected." He added, "As a former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategy and Finance, I have evaluated the impact of the current situation on the economy and have been contemplating appropriate solutions."

He continued, "There is a ray of light even in the shadows," stating, "At the very least, we can shorten President Yoon Seok-youl's failures by more than two years. Without this opportunity, the next two years would have been even more disastrous."

He also emphasized, "We have demonstrated the power of the National Assembly supporting the system and the citizens who participated in the rallies (after the emergency martial law), which will serve as strong evidence that a more robust democracy can be built in the future."

As future solutions, he proposed ▲ the Constitutional Court's swift acceptance of the impeachment motion and early presidential election ▲ the appointment of an 'economic plenipotentiary ambassador' through bipartisan and government agreement to respond to the launch of the Trump administration's second term ▲ and the establishment of a 'completely new economic policy' once the new government is inaugurated.

Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon is signing a memorandum of understanding with Børge Brende, Chairman of the World Economic Forum, at the Davos Forum in Switzerland on January 15 last year to establish the 4th Industrial Revolution Center. Provided by Gyeonggi Province

After the opening remarks, the press asked questions about the domestic political situation, such as "What do you think about the prospects of an early presidential election given the recent reversal in the Democratic Party's approval ratings?" and "Will you run for president?"

In response, Governor Kim said, "Isn't K-drama entertaining? Korean politics also has incredible speed and twists. It can be called a K-political drama. It is unpredictable and volatile. We don't know how approval ratings will change a week from now. There is no need to be overly emotional."

Regarding the question about running for president, he avoided a direct answer by saying, "You can't put the cart before the horse," and added, "The most important thing now is to eliminate political uncertainty and revive the economy."

Meanwhile, Lee Joo-ok, Director of the Asia-Pacific Secretariat at the WEF, who conducted the session, evaluated, "South Korea has faced significant political challenges in recent weeks, including the declaration of martial law and the impeachment of leaders. This briefing was a special opportunity to have an open discussion with Governor Kim Dong-yeon about South Korea's political situation and economic outlook."

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