The Shadow Behind the Impeachment of South Korea's President? Xi Jinping Acknowledges It

On the afternoon of February 7, South Korean National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik met with Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader Xi Jinping in Harbin.

People News - According to reports from Chinese state media, on the afternoon of February 7, Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader Xi Jinping met in Harbin with South Korean National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik, who was attending the opening ceremony of the Asian Winter Games. South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency described the meeting as "paying a visit to Xi Jinping." Prior to this, Woo Won-shik had also held talks in Beijing with Zhao Leji, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) of China.

Both Xi and Zhao emphasized that "China's policy toward South Korea remains stable," expressing a desire to further develop the "China-South Korea strategic cooperative partnership." In response, Woo Won-shik stated that "friendship with China is a core aspect of South Korea's foreign policy and will not change." He also expressed South Korea's willingness to work with China to "elevate South Korea-China relations to a new level in the coming year" and highlighted the importance of "the South Korea-China parliamentary alliance and friendly groups."

Woo’s visit to Beijing and his remarks come at a particularly unusual time, as South Korea is currently embroiled in a political crisis over the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-yeol. Political parties and the public are locked in a fierce struggle, and the National Assembly has played a crucial role in the impeachment process.

Since taking office, President Yoon has pursued a pro-U.S. and tough-on-China foreign policy, which has been met with resistance from pro-China factions in South Korea. On the night of December 3, 2023, Yoon abruptly declared a nationwide state of emergency. That same night, Woo Won-shik reportedly scaled a fence to enter the National Assembly. Approximately six hours later, the legislature voted to declare the state of emergency illegal and lifted it. On December 7, Yoon publicly apologized to the nation for declaring emergency rule. Following this, South Korea’s opposition-controlled National Assembly intensified its efforts to investigate Yoon. On December 11, Woo Won-shik announced the launch of a formal investigation. Then, on January 19, Yoon was arrested on charges of "leading an attempted insurrection" and subsequently impeached. The impeachment trial has since proceeded to its fifth round of hearings.

According to a press release issued by Yoon’s legal team on January 22, the president cited four key reasons for declaring the state of emergency: The opposition Democratic Party, which controls the National Assembly, had repeatedly introduced impeachment motions against government officials. Budget cuts imposed by the opposition had crippled government operations. Authoritarian states such as China and North Korea were waging hybrid warfare against Western democracies. The National Election Commission’s system had numerous vulnerabilities that could allow China to interfere in South Korea’s elections, threatening its democracy.

As a conservative leader, Yoon has insisted that his deployment of the military was not intended to obstruct the National Assembly but rather to serve as a warning to the Democratic Party. The opposition party has used its parliamentary majority to block Yoon’s policy agenda, slash his budget proposals, and impeach multiple high-ranking officials. The press release also pointed out serious national security concerns, including the leaking of classified information related to the THAAD missile defense system and military intelligence personnel lists to China. Additionally, Chinese nationals posing as students had reportedly used drones to surveil South Korean military installations. However, due to opposition party resistance, these issues were not effectively addressed.

There are reports that one of the key reasons President Yoon Suk-yeol declared martial law was to obtain evidence that the opposition party had won the National Assembly election through electoral fraud. It is said that such evidence has already been secured, including the handover of 99 Chinese nationals suspected of election interference to the U.S. military, who have since been transferred to the U.S. base in Okinawa.

As more details about the martial law declaration come to light, a growing number of South Koreans are beginning to recognize the intentions of the opposition party. Many are also realizing "the biased media coverage and the true nature of the Constitutional Court," as well as the extent of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) infiltration into South Korean politics. Former South Korean Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn has pointed out that National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik, who led the vote to revoke martial law, and Han Dong-hoon, the leader of the People Power Party who publicly criticized Yoon’s martial law order, are "obstructionists against martial law."

As a result, large-scale demonstrations supporting President Yoon and protesting against the opposition party have been emerging across the country. On February 1, South Korean lecturer Jeon Han-gil's speech at an anti-impeachment rally in Busan Station Square received widespread public support.

Against this backdrop, Woo Won-shik, who played a key role in pushing for the repeal of martial law and Yoon’s impeachment, visited Beijing and reaffirmed his commitment to strengthening relations with the CCP. Does this not serve as further evidence that Yoon’s martial law declaration was justified? Does it not also indicate that the CCP’s influence behind Yoon’s impeachment is not mere speculation, but a tangible reality?

According to available records, Woo Won-shik graduated from Yonsei University in South Korea and began his political career in 1995 as a member of the Seoul Metropolitan Council. He was elected to the National Assembly in 2004 and successfully re-elected in 2012, 2016, and 2020. He has served as the floor leader of the Democratic Party’s 20th National Assembly and as an advisor to the Democratic Party’s "Committee for Countermeasures Against Fukushima Nuclear Contaminated Water Discharge." The Democratic Party has consistently advocated for closer ties with the CCP. In June 2024, Woo left the Democratic Party and was elected Speaker of the 22nd National Assembly as an independent lawmaker, with his term set to last until May 2026.

Woo’s close ties with the CCP are well-documented. On July 8, 2024, Xing Haiming, then Chinese Ambassador to South Korea, paid a farewell visit to Woo before his departure. On July 9, Woo attended the inauguration ceremony of the South Korea-China Parliamentary Alliance for the 22nd National Assembly. On August 22, just before the 32nd anniversary of South Korea-China diplomatic relations, the organization "Korea-China Together" was officially established. After the ceremony, Woo met with Han Fangming, the Chinese co-chair of "Korea-China Together," as well as Fang Kun, the interim chargé d'affaires of the Chinese Embassy in South Korea. On January 8, 2025, China’s new ambassador, Dai Bing, paid a courtesy visit to Woo, followed by Woo’s high-profile visit to China in February, during which he received a high-level reception from the CCP.

Additionally, when President Yoon ordered South Korea to resume loudspeaker broadcasts against North Korea in 2024 as a countermeasure, Woo Won-shik opposed the move, stating, "As Speaker of the National Assembly, I request that the government temporarily suspend the loudspeaker broadcasts to North Korea."

Moreover, in June 2023, when Japan announced its plan to discharge Fukushima nuclear wastewater into the ocean, China launched a fresh wave of anti-Japanese propaganda. Coincidentally, Woo Won-shik also announced a hunger strike at the same time.

Given these circumstances, it is reasonable to suspect that Woo’s recent meeting with senior CCP officials was aimed at further coordinating strategies with China against President Yoon. The first step for South Korea to counter CCP influence may be to rally behind its president and halt the impeachment process.