Presidential aide apologizes for ‘clash’ with foreign minister
Key presidential aide Kim Hyunchong took to Twitter Wednesday to express his views on the intense public attention to his “argument” with Foreign Minister Kang Kyungwha earlier this year.
“There are concerns about the differences between officials in charge of foreign affairs and national security,” Kim said. “It is due to my lack of virtue. I lost composure while trying too hard to establish the best policy in the whirlwind of international affairs. I will be more humble and work harder.” In the message, he did not deny the reports of a verbal clash with the foreign minister.
The reflective comments from the second deputy director of the presidential National Security Office (NSO) came after Kang revealed during a National Assembly session earlier this week that there was a spat between them during President Moon Jae-in’s tour of central Asia in April. Kim reportedly reprimanded a foreign ministry employee in Kang’s presence. When she tried to intervene, he reportedly said “It’s my style” in English.
When asked about the incident during the Assembly session, Kang said “I will not deny it,” indicating that a verbal clash between them had taken place. It is considered very rare for the top diplomat to disclose an argument with a top presidential aide.
Their “duel” has received intense attention on social media amid rising concerns that Cheong Wa Dae was ignoring the ministry in key foreign policy decisions. It is Kim who has been the most active in dealing with the Korea-Japan trade row. The abrupt decision to withdraw from the military intelligence-sharing pact with Japan was also reportedly initiated by Cheong Wa Dae against the ministry’s advice.
The two officials formerly worked together in the foreign ministry in the mid-2000s, when Kim served as head of the trade affairs division, a ministerial-level post, and Kang was a director-general dealing with international organizations. Kim is a few years younger than Kang, which also makes the quarrel unusual by Korean societal norms.
The foreign ministry has not fully clarified exactly what was said between the two and who was there to witness the incident. But Cheong Wa Dae set out to assuage concerns about the rift between the presidential office and the foreign ministry during a critical period for Korea’s diplomacy, particularly with the lingering challenges from Japan and North Korea as well as the rising concerns about weakening of the Korea-U.S. alliance.
“Fundamentally, there is no huge clash between the foreign ministry and the NSO,” presidential spokeswoman Ko Min-jung said during a press briefing at Cheong Wa Dae, Tuesday.