The government yesterday said it “respects” South Koream lawmakers’ decision to impeach President Yoon Suk-yeol after he declared martial law earlier this month.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) in a written response to media queries said it “respects the South Korean people and its parliament’s decision made via democratic procedure” to impeach Yoon.
The ministry would continue to “pay close attention” to developments in the East Asian country, it added.
Photo: Yang Cheng-yu, Taipei Times
The ministry also said that Taiwan and South Korea are both “members of the Indo-Pacific democratic partnership and have enjoyed steadfast relations in terms of economic, trade and people-to-people ties.”
Taiwan and South Korea would continue to enhance cooperation and exchanges in multiple fields based on previous “substantial achievements,” it said.
The South Korean National Assembly on Saturday voted 204 to 85 to impeach Yoon after he declared martial law on Dec. 3. The declaration ignited nationwide protests and was overturned by lawmakers just six hours later.
An impeachment motion was first put to a vote on Dec. 7, but failed to pass due to a boycott by lawmakers from the ruling People Power Party.
Now that the second impeachment vote has passed the National Assembly, the South Korean Constitutional Court has 180 days to rule on whether Yoon’s impeachment should be upheld.
Yoon has been suspended from office and South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo is now the country’s interim leader.
Taiwanese traveling to South Korea are advised to avoid taking part in political gatherings or protests while in the country, the ministry said.
A relatively large earthquake may strike within the next two weeks, following a magnitude 5.2 temblor that shook Taitung County this morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. An earthquake struck at 8:18am today 10.2km west of Taitung County Hall in Taitung City at a relatively shallow depth of 6.5km, CWA data showed. The largest intensity of 4 was felt in Taitung and Pingtung counties, which received an alert notice, while areas north of Taichung did not feel any shaking, the CWA said. The earthquake was the result of the collision between the Philippine Plate and the Eurasian Plate, the agency said, adding
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