"Presidential Office Informally Deliver Martial Law Justification Data to Foreign Media"

After the December 3 emergency martial law incident, the president's office delivered informal explanatory materials to foreign reporters claiming the legitimacy of declaring martial law through the deputy spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Yoo Chang-ho, deputy spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said he attended a plenary session of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee and received the data from the foreign secretary's office on the 5th and delivered it to foreign reporters he knew personally.

Kim Young-bae of the Democratic Party admitted that the data included such a decision by the emergency martial law as a president who worships the constitutional order or a claim by President Yoon Suk Yeol that he did not control lawmakers from entering the National Assembly.

Representative Kim claimed that such an act constitutes propaganda of rebellion under the criminal law, but Deputy Spokesperson Yoo explained that he personally requested the data from the presidential office because of reporters' inquiries, and that there was no upper order.

Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yeol said he would investigate the facts, saying he did not know if the data had been delivered and did not agree with the contents.