Jang Donghyuk Reiterates "Definitely Assistant Secretary"... Rebuts Controversy Over U.S. Visit Meeting Official's Title

Jang Donghyuk, leader of the People Power Party, recently refuted criticism raised during his visit to the United States regarding the alleged exaggeration of a U.S. State Department official's title, stating, "It was definitely an Assistant Secretary or higher."

On April 25, Jang wrote on Facebook, "If you check the U.S. State Department website, there are only two people listed under public diplomacy leadership," adding, "The more people try to undermine diplomatic achievements by focusing on titles, the more the public will focus on the actual results."

Photo of Jang Donghyuk, Chairman of the People Power Party, having a meeting with the U.S. Department of State Deputy Secretary of State. People Power Party

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His remarks came after Chief Spokesperson Park Sunghoon told reporters earlier that day, "There were some mistakes during the party leader’s visit to the U.S., and if there were any parts that could have caused misunderstandings, we apologize and will strive harder to earn the trust of our party members." In response to some media outlets reporting that the People Power Party had apologized for "inflating" official titles, Jang directly criticized these reports.

Jang linked a related news article to his Facebook post that day, stating, "I express strong regret toward certain media outlets that are distorting the essence of the issue."

Previously, after returning from an eight-night, ten-day trip to the United States, Jang had informed the press corps that he met with a "U.S. Assistant Secretary of State." However, when the U.S. side clarified that the official Jang met was Gavin Wax, Chief of Staff to the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy, some raised concerns about possible misrepresentation.

Jang explained that he met with two officials at the State Department, and that the person he met before Chief of Staff Wax was indeed at the Assistant Secretary level. Nevertheless, controversy continued as further reports identified the official as a "Senior Deputy Assistant Secretary."

The People Power Party countered through an official statement at the time, saying, "The person we met on the first day of our visit to the State Department attended the meeting with the title of Acting Assistant Secretary, which is why we referred to the official as being at the Assistant Secretary level."

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