Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup answers questions during a National Assembly audit of his ministry at the Ministry of National Defense headquarters in Yongsan District, Seoul, Tuesday.

National Assembly's three-week audit begins

By Kang Seung-woo

Issues related to the relocation of the presidential office and the killing of a South Korean fisheries official by North Korea dominated the first day of the National Assembly's audit of the defense ministry, Tuesday.

The government inspection came as the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) has asked former President Moon Jae-in to answer questions in writing in connection with the official's death near the western sea border in September 2020, while the main opposition has found faults with President Yoon Suk-yeol's decision to move the presidential office from Cheong Wa Dae south to the compound of the Ministry of National Defense.

The Assembly launched the three-week audit of the government and state agencies earlier in the day, the first such parliamentary audit taking place during the Yoon administration.

"Political suppression by the government authorities in power is being carried out (against the Moon administration), and the subject matter is related to security and national defense, including the killing of the fisheries official in the West Sea," said Rep. Kim Young-bae of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK).

"If you look at the written investigation that the BAI has requested of former President Moon, it seems that the BAI is conducting a politically stigmatizing audit as if there were allegations and charges against former President Moon," he continued.

In response, Rep. Sung Il-jong of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) questioned why the BAI's inspection of the case constitutes political suppression.

"We cannot agree to framing the BAI's audit as the new administration's political suppression of the previous one," he said.

"It is absurd to attack it as political suppression while the state auditor is trying to find out how the military handled the case and when it reported to President Moon," he said.

Separately, Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup was in the hot seat over his remarks favoring the relocation of the presidential office.

Asked by DPK leader Rep. Lee Jae-myung whether the relocation was appropriate, the defense minister said it was not right to assess the plan based on how much it costs.

"All things considered, it fulfilled the president's pledge to move the presidential office," the minister said. "I think the relocation was right."

In response, DPK Rep. Sul Hoon said it was a shock to see the defense minister say that when the decision has the consequence of requiring the relocation of soldiers to other places.

"I advise the defense minister to think about whether it was really appropriate," he said.

The DPK also took issue with the costs of the relocation.

"Many estimates say the costs will exceed 1 trillion won ($700 million), but the government and the defense ministry said it will not. They are doing everything they can to underreport the budget," Sul said.

President Yoon said previously the relocation would cost 49.6 billion won, but the opposition party says it will surpass 1 trillion won, adding that there could be more unidentified expenses from the relocation.

On the other hand, the PPP focused on shedding light on the North Korean killing of a South Korean citizen.

The death of the 47-year-old fisheries official, Lee Dae-jun, near the western sea border in 2020, is being revisited under the Yoon administration after the Coast Guard in June overturned its earlier conclusion that he had been killed while attempting to defect to the North.

"It is virtually the same as negligent homicide or abetting a murder," PPP Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon said.

"What's even stranger is that the Moon administration convened an emergency ministerial meeting, not a National Security Council meeting, raising speculation that the government was trying to cover up the incident," he said.

At a session of the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, the two sides locked horns over issues of Yoon's recent trip to Great Britain and the United States.

Before the Assembly audit, the DPK had denounced the president's trip as a "diplomatic disaster" due to his failure to pay tribute to Queen Elizabeth II as she lie in state on her funeral day, the lack of tangible outcomes from his talks with U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his use of foul language caught on a hot mic in New York. As a result, the opposition passed a proposal for the dismissal of Foreign Minister Park Jin, but Yoon rejected it last week.

The conflict between the two sides continued during the session, thereby suspending the audit 30 minutes after its beginning at 10 a.m. The session was suspended once more in the afternoon over the issue of whether to replay the video footage capturing Yoon's use of profanity.

In response to the DPK's attacks, the PPP defended the president and the foreign minister, saying that Yoon's trip had produced diplomatic accomplishments.