Ruling party to accept impending Constitutional Court ruling on Yoon's impeachment

The ruling People Power Party (PPP) will accept whatever decision the Constitutional Court makes on President Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment trial, the party's floor leader said Sunday, outlining the party's official stance ahead of the ruling.

Rep. Kweon Seong-dong's remark came as the court is currently deliberating whether to reinstate or remove Yoon from office after he was impeached over his short-lived martial law declaration on Dec. 3. It has yet to announce the date of the ruling, though many observers expect it to take place this week.

"Our party's official stance is that (we) will accept the court's decision," he told reporters. "As you all know, constitutional trials are single-trial cases ... once a ruling is made, the outcome is binding for everyone."

If Yoon is ousted, the country will be required to hold a snap presidential election within 60 days. If reinstated, he will serve out the remainder of his term through May 2027.

Meanwhile, Kweon also called on the court to quickly make a decision on the impeachment trial of Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, citing Washington's designation of Seoul as a "sensitive" country in January before former President Joe Biden left office.

"It has been 80 days since Prime Minister Han has been suspended from his duties," Kweon said. "We have already wasted a significant amount of golden time at a national level."

Kweon added that the Korean government "must humbly accept" criticism, saying it is the government's fault for not recognizing the designation early on.

On Friday, the U.S. Department of Energy said the Biden administration placed Seoul in the lowest category of its "sensitive and other designated countries list," raising concerns of possible disruptions to joint cooperation in advanced technologies. (Yonhap)