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South Korean president refuses further questioning

According to the president's attorney Yun Gap-geun, he refused to participate in the second day of interrogation for health reasons

SEOUL, January 16. /TASS/. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has refused to participate in the second day of interrogation for health reasons, his attorney Yun Gap-geun said.

"President Yoon is not well and fully explained his position yesterday so there is nothing more to be interrogated about," Yonhap quoted him as saying. Earlier, Yoon refused to cooperate during a 10-hour-long questioning session. According to the news agency, after being arrested over the insurrection case on Wednesday morning, Yoon spent the night at a detention center.

The interrogation was expected to resume at 2 p.m. local time (5 a.m. GMT). Earlier, according to the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO), the president’s team asked to postpone the questioning initially slated to begin in the morning. Previously, Yoon said that it was his decision to arrive for questioning.

On January 15, for the first time in the history of the Republic of Korea, an ousted from power, but still formally incumbent president was arrested.

On December 14, 2024, South Korea’s parliament voted to impeach Yoon over his decision to declare martial law, which was seen as a violation of the country’s constitution. The Constitutional Court now has to decide whether to uphold the impeachment motion or reinstate the president. Yoon has been suspended from office until the verdict is announced.