Yoon Suk-yeol Decides to Move Presidential Office to Defense Ministry Building in Yongsan
It is official now that the Presidential office is moving to Yongsan:
President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol on Sunday announced a decision to move the presidential office from Cheong Wa Dae to what is now the defense ministry building several kilometers away, saying he wants his office to move out of a “symbol of imperial” presidency and get closer to the people.
The decision is highly symbolic as Cheong Wa Dae has been used for decades as the presidential office and residence, though its secluded location and the way the president’s work office is located away from those of aides sparked criticism it causes the president to be out of touch with the public.
Yoon said he will move into the defense ministry compound in Seoul’s central district of Yongsan immediately after his inauguration on May 10. On the same day, Cheong Wa Dae will be fully opened to the public, he said.
The defense ministry will move into the Joint Chiefs of Staff building in the compound, he said.
Yonhap
There is going to be some offices dislocated from the Defense Ministry that has the Democrat Party lodging complaints about national security:
Yoon admitted that some of the current occupants, including the defense ministry and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will have to make partial relocations to make room for the presidential office.
He dismissed the notion that moving their offices will create gaps in national defense, a charge that has been leveled by some lawmakers of the ruling Democratic Party. Yoon belongs to the main opposition People Power Party.
I find it interesting now that the Democratic Party is now concerned about national security after years of advocating for appeasement of North Korea.
It also appears the closure of Yongsan Garrison also played into this decision:
Above all, he stressed the advantages of its proximity to a planned national park.
“Starting this year, the (land of the) surrounding U.S. military base is expected to be returned in stages, which will allow us to swiftly construct Yongsan Park, use the defense ministry building as an office and commune and communicate with the people,” Yoon said.
You can read more at the link, but this move does now make it more likely Yongsan will be turned into a park instead of just more apartment towers.
Leftists have no internal consistency, no objective truths, only opposition to personal liberty for the masses.
We’ve seen this same clown car in every “Democracy” since Athens’ “Wooden Walls”…
I just wish people would wise up and ship theae “fellow travelers” to countries with governments like they advocate (North Korea, Zimbabwe, Venezuela, Russia, and Red China spring to mind).
In the meantime, we’re doomed to listen to their treasonous claptrap.
that has the Democrat Party lodging complaints about national security:
I find it interesting now that the Democratic Party is now concerned about national security after years of advocating for appeasement of North Korea.
@GIKorea
That is how politics work here in Korea.
For the opposition party it is their job to voice opposition to what the ruling party does so that they can be seen as being relevant, rally their support base, and show the ruling party that they have to negotiatie with them if anything is to happen.
I believe it’s also the same with the US.
But anyways.
You make it sound like that the conservatives all support the move while the left all oppose it.
However it’s not that simple, and I’m afraid from your statement, some who do not have access to Korean language newspaper will translate it as a simple left vs right spat.
Some conservatives are voicing concerns on why Yoon is making a big ruckus about moving out of the Blue House, when there are bigger and pressing issues to be tackled and eleven former Chairmans of the Joint Chiefs also voiced concerns about the move, as this translation from the Dong A Ilbo shows.
Now Generals usually support the conservatives, so for eleven to come out like this means, that even some with conservative leanings are concerned about the security issues of the move.
In their statement, they argued, “The relocation of the Blue House office to the Ministry of National Defense may lead to a chain of events between the Ministry of National Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which may lead to a security vacuum during the period of regime transfer and a period of security weakness in which North Korea launches missiles one after another and shows a trend in preparation for a nuclear test.” . “If the Ministry of National Defense is used as the office of the Blue House, it will become a good target since the enemy can destroy the South Korean government and the military command at the same time.”
https://www.donga.com/news/article/all/20220321/112443067/1
For those who do not know, the Dong A Ilbo is a conservative newspaper and are usually supportive of the conservative government along with the Chosun Ilbo and the Joongang Ilbo.
There is also the issue of the various command and control systems that need to be moved to the new facilities and whether they will be ready before May 10th.
Anyways, let’s see how the new government and the MND tackle the various issues resulting from the move.
Hopefully, there won’t be chaos in the military command, control and communications resulting from the move if and when the DPRK decides to ratch things up.
And for those who think moving all the equipment is an easy piece of cake, a translated piece from the Chosun written by the renowned defense reporter Yoon young-gun.
Some are concerned about cyber security issues and the problem of establishing a command and control (C4I) system. If you move, you need to re-establish the military communication network, but to prepare for North Korean hacking, you need to take time to check and prepare. Moving the Blue House situation room (underground bunker) system is expected to take several months or more and cost a lot of money. An official from the Ministry of National Defense said, “I hope that the speed of the Blue House relocation can be adjusted as it can lead to various side effects and confusion.”
https://www.chosun.com/politics/politics_general/2022/03/18/JERN6BBBG5BKPBGD7SSYI37XBY/
Moving all the equipment is not impossible, but since it will be rushed, there will undoubtedly be misses and jury-rigs.
Hopefully we won’t face a situation where those misses and jury-rigs fail during a critical moment.