Photo : YONHAP News
The main opposition Democratic Party warned that it will take strong measures, including steps to impeach the defense minister, if the government sends troops to fight in the Russia-Ukraine war without approval from the National Assembly.
During a Supreme Council meeting at the National Assembly on Wednesday, senior council member Kim Byung-joo cited Article 60 of the Constitution, which stipulates that parliamentary approval is required for the overseas deployment of armed forces, stressing that sending even a single troop abroad constitutes a deployment.
He further warned that if the government deploys troops to the Ukraine battlefield without National Assembly approval, the opposition party will consider various measures, including an impeachment motion against the defense minister.
He further criticized the current administration for attempting to bypass the need for National Assembly approval by mislabeling the troops as members of a monitoring or observation team.
President Yoon Suk Yeol said earlier in the week that a South Korean delegation will visit Ukraine to share information on the North Korean troops in Russia and discuss how best to cooperate with Ukrainian intelligence and defense officials.