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People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok speaks at a Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 8th. / Yonhap

The main opposition People Power Party (PPP) is ramping up pressure on the government over North Korea policy and South Korea–U.S. diplomatic friction. In particular, the party characterized controversies surrounding intelligence cooperation between Seoul and Washington as an "alliance crisis," demanding the dismissal of Unification Minister Chung Dong-young and National Intelligence Service (NIS) Director Lee Jong-seok. The opposition is also pressing the administration by highlighting key foreign affairs and defense issues, including a landmine explosion in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and Ukraine's public disclosure of the repatriation of North Korean prisoners of war.

Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok wrote on Facebook on the 11th, "Visas were denied for NIS personnel intended for dispatch to Washington, and lawmaker Jung Chung-rae was unable to attend a parliamentary audit in the U.S. due to visa delays by American authorities," pointing out that "beyond mere misunderstanding, the South Korea–U.S. alliance is heading toward 'rupture'."

Leader Jang singled out Minister Chung and Director Lee as the root causes of the crisis in the alliance, demanding their removal. Criticizing Minister Chung, Jang argued that "he took North Korea's side by claiming the landmine incident could not be definitively pinpointed as a North Korean attack, adheres to North Korea's 'two-state' rhetoric, and refers to North Korea as 'Joseon'." Regarding Director Lee, he noted that "he is a figure who has publicly advocated for South Korea–China security cooperation" and "has consistently rejected the South Korea–U.S. alliance by opposing both THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) and GSOMIA (General Security of Military Information Agreement)."

PPP Floor Leader Jeong Jeom-sig also criticized the administration during a press conference at the National Assembly on the same day, remarking, "The South Korea–U.S. alliance has run into a severe crisis under the Lee Jae-myung administration," and claiming, "While self-inflicting a crisis in the alliance across diplomacy, security, and the economy, the government is cherry-picking actions that please North Korea and Russia."

Senior party lawmakers Na Kyung-won and Ahn Cheol-soo joined the offensive as well. Responding to Democratic Party criticism over her sending a letter of gratitude to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy regarding the public disclosure of repatriated North Korean POWs, Representative Na retorted, "Blocking the path for future repatriations of North Korean POWs is the very outcome desired by the Lee Jae-myung Democratic Party administration," branding it an "openly pro-North regime."

Representative Ahn cited the recent discovery of North Korean anti-personnel landmines in Incheon, urging President Lee to "immediately halt this 'subservient farce' toward North Korea." He also called for proportional countermeasures against North Korean provocations, including the resumption of frontline loudspeaker broadcasts and anti-Pyongyang leaflet distribution campaigns.

                                                                                                          Kim Dong-wook