Security Chief: "Extending Travel Ban Without Investigating Lee Jong-seop Is a Violation of Basic Rights"

Jang Ho-jin, the Director of the National Security Office, claimed on the 14th that the core issue regarding the controversy over the appointment of Ambassador Lee Jong-seop to Australia (former Minister of National Defense), who is under investigation by the High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Division (PCC) for allegedly exerting external pressure on the investigation into the death of Marine Corporal Chae Sang-byeong, is that "the PCC has not conducted any investigation so far."

On the same day, Jang appeared on SBS's news program and stated, "The PCC's extension of the travel ban for such a long period without conducting any investigation is clearly a violation of basic rights and an abuse of investigative authority."

The Presidential Office has countered that the PCC did not summon Ambassador Lee even once after receiving the accusation in September last year, only imposed the travel ban three months later in December, and conducted a face-to-face investigation just on the 7th, right before his departure to Australia, arguing that this was not intended to obstruct or delay the investigation.

Jang criticized, "The travel ban is valid for one month, so it was continuously extended every month without actually conducting an investigation. As you know, travel bans are imposed in urgent situations where ongoing investigation is necessary."

He added, "They did not even start the investigation before the ambassador's appointment, so I cannot understand what kind of disruption there could be in the investigation or inquiry. If the opposition party is truly sincere about this investigation, they should first question the PCC for not conducting any investigation for 6 to 7 months."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

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Jang, a diplomat who previously served as ambassador to Russia and Cambodia, also dismissed the opposition party's claim that the ambassador's appointment was intended to evade investigation, calling it "absurd and completely inconsistent," and said, "Obtaining agrement, which is the host country's consent, takes one to two months. Moreover, once the agrement is requested, related agencies and companies are all informed during the process. If the intention was to send someone abroad to evade investigation, would they choose such a time-consuming method?"

He emphasized, "Nowadays, just by searching the internet, you can find the embassy's address, phone number, and even photos of maps. Furthermore, there are 160,000 Korean residents in Australia. Sending someone abroad to evade investigation under these circumstances is, in my view, really unreasonable. It would be much harder to find someone quietly turning off their phone somewhere in Seoul."

Regarding the background of the appointment as ambassador to Australia, he explained, "He is the most suitable person for the position. During his tenure as minister, he worked extensively with Australia. He also signed the K9 self-propelled howitzer contract and led the groundbreaking ceremony for the local production plant of the K9."

"He submitted a copy of his letter of credence to the Australian Ministry of Foreign Affairs just two days after his appointment, which is unusually fast. This indicates that Australia also holds a favorable view of him," he added.

When asked by the host whether there are any plans to withdraw Ambassador Lee's appointment, he replied, "No."

Meanwhile, regarding Mr. Baek, a Korean detained in Russia, Jang said, "There has been communication between Korea and Russia, and consular assistance is being provided. We are consulting with the ambassador and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the discussions are ongoing."

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