[Exclusive] Contrary to President Yoon's claim, text on disobedience sent to martial law troops

[Anchor]

President Yoon Suk Yeol stated in a speech yesterday (12.12) that the recent martial law was 'a warning'.

However, it has been newly revealed that former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun conveyed to commanders that 'failure to follow orders would be considered insubordination', and this message was also relayed to the martial law troops, pressuring them to carry out operations.

This is an exclusive report by reporter Jo Hye-jin.

[Report]

When the emergency martial law was declared, a long message was sent to the martial law troops who had been dispatched upon receiving orders.

According to military officials who spoke to KBS, the message conveyed through a secure phone, stating that 'the emergency martial law was imposed in accordance with the Constitution and laws', 'the Minister is responsible for the operations', and 'failure to comply with orders will be dealt with as insubordination'.

This aligns with the content emphasized by former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun during a video conference he hosted immediately after the declaration of emergency martial law.

[Park An-soo/Former Martial Law Commander/Dec. 5: "At that time, during the video conference, he stated that all military activities would be the responsibility of the Minister, and that failure to follow orders would be considered insubordination..."]

President Yoon Suk Yeol explained that this emergency martial law was 'a warning', but it has been identified that the directives from former Minister Kim, who was allegedly the only one he discussed the martial law with, were communicated down to the front-line units, emphasizing the execution of orders.

While the police have conducted a search of former Minister Kim's secure phone server, the prosecution is also securing related testimonies and is currently investigating.

A Defense Ministry official stated that the message was not drafted at the ministry level.

However, given that elite units were deployed for 'mission execution' at that time, it is crucial to investigate who sent such messages and what the intent was.

This is KBS News, Jo Hye-jin.