Ban will speak to nation upon return

Ban Ki-moon

By Yi Whan-woo

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will return to Korea on Jan. 22 at the earliest after his U.N. tenure expires in December, sources said Tuesday.

Without elaborating, the sources said Ban may deliver a message to the public upon his return, which is likely to rekindle speculation over his possible presidential bid.

Ban’s bid has reportedly been backed by President Park Geun-hye and her supporters in the ruling Saenuri Party.

“Ban does not want to be viewed as affiliated with a specific political faction,” a source said.

If this is true, Ban may try to distance himself from Park, who has been under mounting calls to resign over a corruption scandal surrounding her and her friend Choi Soon-sil.

Ban’s popularity has been falling as well in recent polls on potential presidential candidates after the scandal erupted in late October.

“It will take about two to three weeks for him to return to Seoul after his U.N. term ends because he will still need to wrap up lots of other things after that,” a source said. “He may come to Seoul on Jan. 22 at the earliest or Jan. 25 at the latest. He will make an announcement immediately upon his return.”

Some sources speculated Ban will mainly focus on reporting his work at the U.N. in his message, although he may also address issues in Korean politics.

The outgoing U.N. chief expressed “deep concerns” about the domestic political situation, according to the sources.

Ban repeatedly left open the possibility of his 2017 presidential bid, fueling speculation he may run in the election as a pro-Park candidate for the Saenuri Party.

But he does not want to be categorized as a member of a certain political faction, the sources said.

Ban won support of 18.1 percent in a survey conducted by JoongAng Ilbo last week of potential presidential candidates. He trailed former leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, Moon Jae-in, who garnered 21.5 percent.

In a September poll, Ban had 32.7 percent support against Moon’s 17.3 percent.

Ban plans to meet U.S. President-elect Donald Trump during his remaining term to discuss security issues on the Korean Peninsula and global climate change, according to some Korean lawmakers, Sunday.

They were among the Korean delegation who attended the 22nd Conference of the Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change in Morocco on Nov. 22.