No minutes from Cabinet meeting that lasted 5 minutes before martial law declaration

[Anchor]

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety has released the response materials from the Presidential Office regarding the Cabinet meeting prior to the declaration of martial law, which the Prime Minister acknowledged that there were flaws, as well as the Cabinet meeting on the lifting of martial law.

The meeting that decided on the martial law lasted only 5 minutes, and the content of the statements was not included in the response materials.

Kim Min-kyung reports.

[Report]

According to the materials received by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety from the Presidential Office, the Cabinet meeting related to the declaration of emergency martial law was held for 5 minutes from 10:17 PM to 10:22 PM on the night of December 3, just before the declaration.

Attendees included President Yoon Suk Yeol, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, and 11 ministers from the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Interior and Safety, Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Economy and Finance, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, fulfilling the minimum quorum.

The agenda was titled "Proposal for the Declaration of Emergency Martial Law," and the reason for the proposal was stated as "to maintain constitutional order by declaring emergency martial law effective from 10 PM on December 3, 2024."

However, the response materials from the Presidential Office indicated that they 'do not possess' the summary of statements, leaving unclear who said what.

[Han Duck-soo/Prime Minister: "I believe the Cabinet meeting itself had many procedural and substantive flaws. (What we intended to do) was to present opinions and express concerns in order to prevent the martial law."]

Following this, at 4:27 AM on Decembet 4, after the National Assembly passed the resolution to lift the martial law, a Cabinet meeting on the lifting of martial law was held for 2 minutes.

The location was the Cabinet meeting room at the Presidential Office, but the President did not attend. The Prime Minister, Chief of Staff Chung Jin-suk, National Security Director Shin Won-sik, Government Policy Coordination Minister Bang Ki-sun, and the ministers of Justice, National Defense, and Interior and Safety, among others, attended, totaling 16 participants.

Again, the materials from the Presidential Office stated that 'there were no statements other than the Minister of National Defense's proposal explanation,' so it remains unclear what discussions took place.

The law regarding the management of public records requires that minutes containing summaries of statements be prepared for meetings attended by the President or the Prime Minister.

Accordingly, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety has stated that it is continuously requesting additional materials.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety explained that the request for agenda materials related to the declaration of martial law from the Ministry of National Defense was responded to with 'no materials prepared.'

KBS News, Kim Min-kyung.