Controversy over First Lady Kim Kun-hee’s ‘Luxury Shopping’ and President Yoon Seok-yeol’s Trip Cancellation: Political Strife Ignites

Controversy over first lady Kim Kun-hee’s ‘luxury shopping’ ignites political strife
尹, visited 16 times until last year… ‘Similar’ to past presidents
Postponing the trip to Germany and Denmark is also likely to be a ‘political decision’
They seem to have been aware of the controversy over ‘Ms. Kim Kun-hee’s risk’

[앵커]

Given the fact that President Yoon Seok-yeol canceled his trip to Germany and Denmark just five days before leaving the country, some interpret it as a political decision ahead of the general election.

This means that the risk of the trip becoming a topic of political strife due to the possibility of a general strike by doctors or the risk of First Lady Kim Kun-hee was avoided in advance.

This is reporter Kwon Nam-ki.

[기자]

Last July, President Yoon Seok-yeol made a surprise visit to Ukraine, which was at war.

It was our leader’s first visit to a warring country and was considered a catalyst for joining the reconstruction support council, but the opposition party criticized that the place the president should have gone was the site of the Osong Underpass disaster.

[권칠승 / 더불어민주당 수석대변인 (지난해 7월) : 대통령실은 윤 대통령이 한국 뛰어가도 상황을 못 바꾼다고….]

[조태용 / 당시 국가안보실장 (지난해 7월, YTN 뉴스특보) : (집중호우) 초기 상황이었기 때문에 지금 생각하시는 것과는 조금 상황이….]

The controversy over First Lady Kim Kun-hee’s shopping for luxury goods in Lithuania, which arose during the NATO summit just before her visit to Ukraine, added fuel to the battle between the ruling and opposition parties.

[박성준 / 더불어민주당 대변인 (지난해 7월) : 호객 행위에 무려 다섯 개나 되는 매장에 끌려다녔다는 말입니까?]

[이용 / 국민의힘 의원 (지난해 7월, YTN 라디오 ‘뉴스킹 박지훈입니다’) : 섬유·패션, 이런 것들을 (김건희) 여사가 인식을 하고 어떻게 보면 문화 탐방의….]

Controversy surrounding the number and effects of President Yoon’s visits continues.

There were 16 visits until last year, which is not much more than the previous administration, but as can be seen in the case of the failure to host the Expo, presidential visits are a frequent subject of political strife.

[홍익표 / 더불어민주당 원내대표 (지난해 12월) : 실효성 없는 회담을 위해 혈세를 쓰면서 해외를 나간 것 아닌지 묻고 싶습니다.]

[윤재옥 / 국민의힘 원내대표 (지난 16일) : 대통령 순방을 두고 민주당은 사사건건 트집을 잡고 폄훼해왔습니다.]

The President’s Office explained that the background to President Yoon’s sudden postponement of his trip to Germany and Denmark was due to concerns that he could give the opposition party an excuse to attack again ahead of the general elections in April.

If a ‘general doctor’s strike’ opposing the expansion of medical school admissions materializes during the tour, controversies like those caused by heavy rains last summer could be repeated.

Even with the postponement of the trip, the opposition party pointed out that it was unclear, but the President’s Office countered that it was just a case of causticism, asking whether they should go or not.

It is also possible that the fact that ‘Ms. Kim Kun-hee’s risk’ still remains was also taken into consideration.

This is because there are concerns that whether or not they accompany the tour will only create controversy and diminish the effectiveness of the tour.

[윤석열 / 대통령(KBS 특별 대담, 지난 7일) : (부부싸움 하셨어요?) 전혀 안 했습니다.]

However, since the President’s Office has not provided a clear official explanation for the reason for the postponement of the trip, it seems difficult to avoid criticism that it is creating a topic for political strife.

This is Kwon Nam-ki from YTN.

Cinematographer: Kim Tae-un, Kwak Young-joo
Video editing: Jeong Ji-yoon
Graphics: Inside view
Screen provided by: KBS, Lithuanian media ’15min’

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2024-02-17 20:15:00
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