US wants situation in South Korea to resolve peacefully and "in accordance with the rule of law". Biden says he's "just getting briefed" on developments in South Korea
US President Joe Biden declined to weigh in on the unfolding events in South Korea after the country’s lawmakers blocked South Korean President Yoon’s martial law decree, saying he has yet to be fully briefed.
“I’m just getting briefed on it,” Biden told reporters when asked about South Korea after delivering a speech at the National Museum of Slavery in Angola.
The Biden administration was “not notified in advance” of the president declaring martial law, a spokesperson for the National Security Council said in an updated statement.
Earlier, CNN reported that many in the Biden administration appeared to have been caught by surprise by the turn of events.
“We are seriously concerned by what we are seeing develop,” according to a senior administration official.
Earlier in the day, a National Security Council spokesperson said: “The Administration is in contact with the ROK (Republic of Korea) government and is monitoring the situation closely.”
Biden and Yoon’s relationship: The US president has praised Yoon as a “great friend” in meetings both at the White House and overseas.
Just days after Yoon was sworn into office in 2022, Biden visited Seoul. Yoon also joined Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida for 2023’s historic Camp David summit.
Yoon even took the microphone during a 2023 state dinner at the White House to deliver a rendition of “American Pie” by Don McLean, prompting Biden to joke, “The next state dinner we’re going to have, you’re looking at the entertainment!”
The United States wants the situation in South Korea “to be resolved peacefully in accordance with the rule of law,” State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said Tuesday, adding that “certainly, the legislature voting to pass something would be consistent with the law of that country.”
Lawmakers who assembled in South Korea’s parliament unanimously voted to block the president’s martial law decree on Tuesday.
Patel confirmed that the US was “not notified in advance” that South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol would declare martial law.
Patel emphasized that the US government is “continuing to seek to engage our counterparts, both here in the United States, but also in Seoul,” but would not provide further details about the diplomatic engagement.
“What we’re focused on right now is continuing to gather the facts, monitor the situation on the ground, and expect this to be fully resolved peacefully and consistent with the rule of law,” he said at a press briefing.
South Korea and its allies will need to watch if North Korea tries to exploit the currently unfolding situation in Seoul after South Korea’s president declared martial law late Tuesday, one former special envoy to the Six Party Talks on North Korea said.
The Six Party Talks were aimed at negotiating the end to North Korea’s nuclear program.
“We need to keep our eyes focused on North Korea and whether they will see an opportunity to exploit this,” Sydney Seiler, the former envoy, told CNN.
In declaring martial law, President Yoon Suk Yeol accused the country’s main opposition party of sympathizing with North Korea and anti-state activities.
The country’s National Assembly has since voted to block the decree, but it’s not clear if Yoon will comply. Regardless, the move, which US officials said appeared to catch the Biden administration by surprise, has thrown South Korea into political chaos.
Seiler said another thing to watch for his how Yoon responds to the National Assembly’s vote and “how he accepts it.” The president is obligated to comply with the vote under South Korean law, but now the president’s cabinet must “deliberate” and review the decision to lift the decree, according to the constitution.
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