President Yoon Suk Yeol held a meeting with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and leaders of the ruling People Power Party likely to discuss follow-up measures after opposition parties submitted an impeachment motion in response to the short-lived martial law declaration.
Prime Minister Han, PPP leader Han Dong-hoon and floor leader Choo Kyung-ho convened at the presidential office just hours after the opposition submitted the motion, following the National Assembly's rejection of the martial law declaration earlier in the day, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The main opposition Democratic Party and five other minor parties plan to report the motion to a parliamentary plenary session Thursday and put it up for a vote as early as Friday.
The impeachment motion requires a two-thirds majority to pass the parliament. Of the 300-member National Assembly, the opposition will need eight votes from PPP lawmakers to pass the bill.
If successful, the Constitutional Court would then rule on whether Yoon's removal from office is warranted.
During the court's deliberation, the president's constitutional powers would be suspended, and the prime minister, as the No. 2 official in the government, would assume presidential responsibilities.
While some PPP lawmakers voted against the martial law declaration, it remains uncertain whether they would side with opposition parties in supporting his impeachment.
While Yoon has not yet responded to the opposition-led impeachment efforts, a senior presidential official claimed Yoon's actions were taken to "protect the constitutional order against groups determined to destroy" the government.
"All those actions were taken in accordance with the Constitution," the official told Yonhap News Agency. (Yonhap)
