North Korea Briefly Reports on the Impeachment of Former President Yoon Seok-yeol a Day After the Announcement
North Korea briefly reported the Constitutional Court's impeachment decision regarding former President Yoon Seok-yeol a day later, without any significant commentary.
On the 5th, the Korean Central News Agency stated, "On the 4th, the Constitutional Court of puppet South Korea announced the impeachment of Yoon Seok-yeol," adding, "According to a unanimous decision adopted by all eight judges, Yoon Seok-yeol was immediately removed from the presidency."
The Korean Central News Agency mentioned that this decision from the Constitutional Court is related to the state of emergency that occurred last year, noting, "The impeachment ruling comes 111 days after the impeachment motion against Yoon Seok-yeol was passed during the emergency situation on December 3rd last year." It also included reports from major foreign media outlets, such as AP, Reuters, and The Guardian, which urgently covered the news of the former president's impeachment.
North Korean Media Focused Solely on Reporting the Facts… Refrains from Commentary
The Workers' Party newspaper also published a report containing the same information as the Korean Central News Agency.
Both media outlets handled the impeachment of the former president based on the factual decision of the Constitutional Court and foreign media reports, without any separate commentary.
They reported in a manner that conveyed the fact of the occurrence in the South, without additional explanations or analyses.
This is different from the situation when former President Park Geun-hye was impeached in March 2017. At that time, North Korea swiftly reported the ruling of the Constitutional Court just 2 hours and 20 minutes after it was announced. However, this time, they did not report on the day of the Constitutional Court's ruling, instead choosing to wait a day before sharing the news.
Swift reporting in 2 hours and 20 minutes
Cautious Attitude of North Korea in Response to Changing Inter-Korean Relations
This attitude of North Korea can be interpreted as an intention to deliberately distance itself from South Korea, which is characterized as a 'hostile relationship between two nations.'
When former President Yoon declared a state of emergency on December 3rd last year, North Korea also did not respond immediately.
At that time, they refrained from any significant reporting for over a week, only delivering a statement 11 days later through the Korean Central News Agency, saying, "A shocking event occurred where Yoon Seok-yeol, who is in a serious political crisis and facing impeachment, declared a state of emergency and brazenly wielded the instruments of fascist dictatorship against the people, turning the puppet Korean land into chaos."
Experts analyze that North Korea's restraint in making direct commentary on South Korea's political turmoil reflects a strategic judgment regarding the situation on the Korean Peninsula.
Recently, North Korea's cautious attitude towards inter-Korean relations can be seen as a calculated move, taking into account international circumstances and internal conditions.
North Korean media are expected to closely monitor the political situation in South Korea following the impeachment of former President Yoon and the process of forming a new government. Depending on future political changes in South Korea, there is a possibility that North Korea's message towards the South will also change, which is noteworthy.
Image source: Yoon Seok-yeol President / News1, News1, YTN
