Park Ji-won is a writer for The Korea Times who has been covering a wide range of topics from Korea’s culture to its politics. An avid journalism enthusiast to the core, Ji-won brings a thoughtful and unique perspective to every topic she covers. On weekends, you'll often find her contemplating life’s purpose on a yoga mat — with a cup of quality tea in hand. A native Korean speaker by birth and fluent in English through her work, she went to college in Japan and is learning Chinese and French — hoping to add Polish, Russian and Thai to the mix.
Defense Minister apologizes again for North Korea boat crossing into South
Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo, left, listens as Rep. Kim Joong-ro of the minor opposition Bareunmirae Party speaks before participating in an interpellation session at the National Assembly, Tuesday. Yonhap
By Park Ji-won
By Park Ji-won
Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo has apologized again for the military's security lapse that allowed a North Korean boat to cross the South's maritime border and has asked for President Moon Jae-in to decide whether to fire him.
“I feel deeply responsible for the security failure and I apologize,” Jeong said during an interpellation session at the National Assembly, Tuesday.
Regarding his potential resignation, he said “I reported to President Moon, who is in charge of appointing me to my position, about the outcome of a detailed investigation, and I think he will make the decision.”
His remarks come amid continuing criticism of the military over its failure to detect a North Korean vessel entering South Korean waters before docking in a port, and the government's alleged attempt to cover up what happened. The opposition parties have been stepping up offensives against Jeong urging him to resign while raising the cover-up allegation citing the fact that the ministry changed its original announcement that the North Korean boat was spotted “at the Samcheok breakwater” to “near the port of Samcheok,” raising questions about the reliability of the statements.
Meanwhile, the minister again denied the cover-up allegations, saying “The ministry takes the security lapse seriously and admits that it failed to deal with the situation adequately as other organizations were also involved when the incident occurred. But the original report was made by a civilian which makes it impossible for us to conceal or minimize what was initially reported.”
Regarding the military's response to the North Korean boat crossing case, he said “The government is improving its contingency manual and the ministry will play an active role in the process.”