we have the word from president yoon. they are staying put because they are seeing a small chance that yoon would do some other type of subterfuge, protesters are here and they are not going away. you can hear the blaring speeches given by angry protesters, and you can also hear the singing, because they want to stay here until truly all the military and police have gone home. christian: where do you think this leaves politics in seoul tonight, particularly the position of the president? >> the president has been keeping mum about what next. he just did his speech, and that was it. in terms of what the main opposition party will do, i think there is a bit of a consensus among the opposition party members that yoon must now either step down or be impeached. i think the two lawmakers inside the national assembly i spoke to said that this is a pretty universal feeling amongst the democratic party, who has nearly enough seats, they just need a few more defections from the ruling party to get this motion. i think there is a se

if they decide that president yoon. if they decide that president yoon. hold this snap election so this is a process that we could see happen fairly quickly in a matter of months. we could see it drag out for a longer period as well. we've seen this before. it is really unclear how long this will take. the last time we had this impeachment process it was about three months, it took about three months for the constitutional court to hand down that decision. indie constitutional court to hand down that decision.— constitutional court to hand down that decision. ~ . , ., ., that decision. we had president yoon sa in: he is that decision. we had president yoon saying he is vowing _ that decision. we had president yoon saying he is vowing to _ that decision. we had president yoon saying he is vowing to fight _ that decision. we had president yoon saying he is vowing to fight for - that decision. we had president yoon saying he is vowing to fight for his - saying he is vowing to fight for his political future. saying he is vowing to fight for his politicalfutur

a steep climb uphill for resident yoon. �* ., president yoon.esident yoon. and in the meantime, south korea has an _ president yoon. and in the meantime, south korea has an interim _ president yoon. and in the meantime, south korea has an interim leader - south korea has an interim leader but of course, people there are without an elected leader. how long could that last? it without an elected leader. how long could that last?— could that last? it could last another six _ could that last? it could last another six months, - could that last? it could last another six months, but - could that last? it could last l another six months, but there could that last? it could last - another six months, but there are two precedents in recent memory of a sitting president being impeached. it took two months for one case and three months for the other case for the constitutional court to come to a decision. based on those precedents we expect the matter to be resolved for now in the next three or four months and then two months, within two months of the rul

yoon suk yeol to impose — from president yoon suk yeol to impose martial— from president yoon suk yeoluk yeol to impose martial law was the - from president yoon suk yeol to impose martial law was the last i impose martial law was the last resort. — impose martial law was the last resort. one _ impose martial law was the last resort, one might— impose martial law was the last resort, one might say, - impose martial law was the last resort, one might say, and - impose martial law was the last resort, one might say, and he l resort, one might say, and he cited — resort, one might say, and he cited pro—north— resort, one might say, and he cited pro—north korean - resort, one might say, and he i cited pro—north korean factions that he — cited pro—north korean factions that he wants _ cited pro—north korean factions that he wants to _ cited pro—north korean factions that he wants to remove - cited pro—north korean factions that he wants to remove from l that he wants to remove from the country. _ that he wants to remove from the country. a _ that he wants to remove from the country, a not _

this is a test as well for president yoon. he is really backed himself into a corner.l upheaval and chaos in the days and weeks to come, and we also need to be mindful that any kind of upheaval in south korea could perhaps provide an opportunity for the neighbour to the north. so there's a lot to the north. so there's a lot to watch and certainly, we say it's for a him to watch and certainly, we say it's fora him in to watch and certainly, we say it's for a him in south korea, they are not sleeping tonight. they absolutely are not, and interesting to get that context from you, jean, because if we look at it through the prism of right now, south korea's world apart from its neighbour, north korea, yet if you go back not that far in history coming do see a different perspective on how society was run there. let's bring in alessio. your thoughts on development, no—one is going to be sleeping very much in south korea tonight, as they wait for the next move from president yoon. there's a lot of criticism in his own party of his declaration. absolutely, this is an extraordin

yoon has now disappeared. so happy! yoon has now disappeared. so ha--! ., yoon has now disappeared.., . .,, ., happy! today's verdict does not mean the president _ happy! today's verdict does not mean the president is - happy! today's verdict does not mean the president is gone - happy! today's verdict does not mean the president is gone for| mean the president is gone for good. for now, he is suspended. the courts will have the final say. translation: find the courts will have the final say. translation: and tonight, mr yoon has _ say. translation: and tonight, mr yoon has said _ say. translation: and tonight, mr yoon has said he _ say. translation: and tonight, mr yoon has said he is _ mr yoon has said he is determined to fight on. this is the biggest — determined to fight on. this is the biggest test _ determined to fight on. this is the biggest test career's - determined to fight on. this is | the biggest test career's young democracy has ever faced. and it's democracy has ever faced. and its past,... the politicians have listened and tonight it is their victory. jen moon is an i

mr yoon is bein: against president yoon? mr yoon is being investigated _ against president yoon?igated by - against president yoon? mr yoon is being investigated by police . is being investigated by police and by prosecutors, so two separate investigations for these charges of insurrection and treason. the people bringing these charges argue there was really nothing in the constitution that allowed him to impose martial law. the prosecutors asked him to come in for questioning yesterday but mr yoon did not show up. they are asking him again today. the police have asked him questioning on wednesday. if he continues not to show up, it is very likely they could move to arrest him, bring him in for questioning this way. he is banned from leaving the country. also police have been trying to raid the presidential office, they have not only to raid the compound because they want to raise his —— such as office key pieces of material but so far the security is not that the men. mr green has been defined through all of this defending his decision and even after the vote of impeachment on s

and what is shocking _ yoon suk yeol. and what is shocking is _ yoon suk yeol.oon suk yeol. and what is shocking is the suddenness yoon suk yeol. and what is - shocking is the suddenness and unexpected _ shocking is the suddenness and unexrrected way— shocking is the suddenness and unexpected way in _ shocking is the suddenness and unexpected way in which - shocking is the suddenness and i unexpected way in which martial law was— unexpected way in which martial law was imposed, _ unexpected way in which martial law was imposed, as _ unexpected way in which martial law was imposed, as if- unexpected way in which martial law was imposed, as if he - unexpected way in which martial law was imposed, as if he wenti law was imposed, as if he went straight — law was imposed, as if he went straight towards _ law was imposed, as if he went straight towards this _ law was imposed, as if he went straight towards this option - straight towards this option rather— straight towards this option rather than _ straight towards this option rather than considering - straight toward

president yoon has been talkin: on office? president yoon has been talking on labour _ office?n has been talking on labour unions - office? president yoon has been talking on labour unions and - talking on labour unions and pushing through labour reforms so far during his term, and the labour unions seem to try to seize the moment of this catastrophe in a political blunder by president yoon to really build and push through this impeachment. i think if this impeachment. i think if this labour union, just to go out the street, or the civilians kind ofjoining these protests, i think it will be really kind of — the whole situation will be political, and more crisis may continue. give us a sense of the scale of his planned to strike the now co—ordinated other different trade unions when it comes to solidifying this message of trying to get president yoon out of office?— trying to get president yoon out of office? now i think this strike is starting _ out of office? now i think this strike is starting from - out of office? now i think this strike is starting from this - strike is sta

what ha--ens impeach president yoon. what happens next _ impeach president yoon.xt following - impeach president yoon. what happens next following this vote? , , , ., vote? or his presidential owers vote? or his presidential powers and _ vote? or his presidential powers and authority - vote? or his presidential powers and authority are suspended for some the current prime minister is now the acting president which helps secure some sense of stability and a chain of command in korean politics and governance, but as far as the impeachment process goes, though, is attentional talk that he might —— the constitutional court will decide whether he should be impeached, whether there are legitimate grounds. they have six months to do that. we are sure that as far as president yoon goes, the way he is acting now, the president will be trying to fight for his political life. he is well—versed in the legal processes since he once had served as prosecutor general the country. but if i could just add that the constitutional court right now is missing three seats, three justice

yoon.resident yoon. a guest earlier said president yoon _ president yoon. a guest earlier said president yoon did - president yoon. a guest earlier said president yoon did this - said president yoon did this because he did not think you did anything wrong. do you agree and why do you think he did what he did last week? t did what he did last week? i think it's natural for him to be quite frustrated about managing divided government and part of the presidential system is this problem which parliamentary ones don't, which is you can have a congress or legislator which is of a different party. some of the frustration is just grounded different party. some of the frustration isjust grounded in the difficulties in governing under those circumstances and reaching bargains. buti under those circumstances and reaching bargains. but i think it's important to point out the president himself — and particularly his wife have come under scrutiny for possible corruption charges as well. and that's a set

but it doesn't mean that mr yoon is gone for good.peach him now moves to the constitutional court, which has six months to decide. if the court rules in favour of his impeachment, then he is out and south korea will hold new elections, but if not, return to power. and mr yoon has made clear that he is going to fight this until the very end. he is a lawyer by trade. he knows the system inside out and he is not going to go quietly. but tonight, this is a huge victory for everybody who's come out to the streets day after day to protest for him to be removed. not everybody will be celebrating today. our reporter yuna ku has been hearing from president yoon's supporters who have been gathered outside seoul city hall. have a listen. here i stand in central seoul, a few kilometres away from the national assembly. here the anger and disappointment are palpable after the assembly voted to pass the impeachment bill against the president. tens of thousands of ante impeachment protesters are together here to express their outrage over the recent

well, i thought president yoon - reason? well, i thought| president yoon has gone reason?ught- president yoon has gone crazy. i thought he was probably leading mental mental in the age of the 1960s and the age of the grandfather. all the justification is wrong. yes there is a small number of people on the extreme right that represent the ruling party who sincerely believe the president is secretly manipulated by north korean agents and kim jong orne from pyongyang but it is a bit like saying the united states in the era of senator mccarthy in the early cold war when american right thought everybody who was talking about gender equality, you know civil rights, was obviously on the payroll of moscow. however, such delusional ideas are quite small in number and i was really surprised to see such justification for the president himself. i don't know whether he believes it or not but it is clearly complete rubbish. no serious north korean sympathiser is in south korean society now. there used to be times when some radical student �*s from north korea, say the early 90s mainly t

leader called for yoon�*s swift suspension.ea has been plunged into political turmoil since yoon declared martial law on tuesday night — a decision which lawmakers swiftly overturned. our asia correspondent rupert wingfield—hayes has more now from seoul. it was very brief, only a few minutes long and what it absolutely wasn't was a resignation speech. president yoon made this apology, he bowed to the people of korea, he said he was sorry for the anxiety and trouble he had brought by declaring martial law. he said he did it out of desperation to try and break a political impasse. he also said, and i think this is the key bit, he said he would now put to the authority or responsibility for what now happens in the hands of his party, the people's power party. i think what that shows us is president yoon is taking another gamble here. he faces a vote of impeachment this afternoon in the national assembly and the key to his survival is keeping his own party on his side, and not crossing to the opposition. he is basically saying to h

president yoon has survived one attempt| yoon has survived one attempt of impeachment.lly from his party, the ppp, is waning? i mean, his party — the party leader has said that he wouldn't support the president in the next vote. there already have been — i don't know if they're up to the required amount but, if not, they're close. most experts assume that the impeachment motion will pass on saturday. but again, that's up to the korean people to make their decision of how to make their decision of how to manage the situation. i'm confident that they will. i'm confident that they will. i'm confident that they will. i'm confident that this will just be a blip — fortunately or unfortunately, south korea has experience in this kind of tumultuous, you know, rough—and—tumble political environment. and thanks to that, korea was able to leave its authoritarian past behind. thanks to that, it's been able to have peaceful transfers of power. thanks to that, there is a vigorous debate about all of theissues a vigorous debate about all of the issues of today — from north korea to ch

what about yoon's own party? the people - will prevail. what about yoon's own party?hment but the majority didn't. what will this whole saga mean for his party? his popularity? can he come back from something like this? i come back from something like this? ~ ., , this? i think now, there is internal — this? i think now, there is internal turmoil _ this? i think now, there is internal turmoil within - this? i think now, there isj internal turmoil within the party. they are trying to bide time so that if and when a snap election takes place they can be better prepared but assuming that there will be a snap election in about five months from now, i don't think there is any chance that they can win so i think they will be slowly trying to regroup themselves in the coming months.— the coming months. briefly before i let _ the coming months. briefly before i let you _ the coming months. briefly before i let you go, - the coming months. briefly before i let you go, south | before i let you go, south korea now obviously without a president. the prime minister has taken over

president yoon said he will lift in order to impose martial law that he declared just a few hours ago the country into political turmoil. he confirmed army forces have been withdrawn. protesters who gathered to demonstrate against the sudden introduction of military rule are now celebrating the sudden reversal. earlier, thousands of protesters clashed with police at they tried to get into the national assembly building. some broke through barricades and climbed defenses to get inside the building. there were scuffles between police and protesters outside. inside, his earlier decision to impose martial law was to protect south korea from what he described as "north korean communist forces," blaming his country's political opposition, but less than two hours after the shocking move from all 190 members of parliament defied the president and voted to block the imposition of martial law. this is the first time the south korean president has declared martial law since the country transformed its government in 19 87, restoring democratic rule. i spoke to our correspondent laura bicker on th

leader called for yoon�*s swift suspension. been plunged into political turmoil since yoon declared martial law on tuesday night — a decision which lawmakers swiftly overturned. joining me live from seoul is our asia correspondent rupert wingfield—hayes. thank you for being there. what can you tell us about what ended up peeling a fairly short speech notable for what to impeach him. along with the rest of the opposition. friday gave the first clear sign called for yoon�*s swift suspension. south korea has been plunged into political turmoil a decision which lawmakers swiftly overturned. joining me live from seoul is our asia correspondent rupert wingfield—hayes. thank you for being there. what can you tell us about what ended up peeling a fairly short speech notable for what the president said but also what he did not say. president said but also what he did not say-— did not say. that's right. it was very — did not say. that's right. it was very brief, _ did not say. that's right. it was very brief, only - did not say. that's

apparently yoon has declined to make any comments, saying it was not time yet.k, we know the protesters will make their voices heard, as we can hear now. they're set to hold a rally, tens of thousands are expected on the streets tomorrow, that is all leading up tomorrow, that is all leading up to this impeachment vote thatis up to this impeachment vote that is scheduled for 7pm tomorrow. we are going to get the thoughts of our asia correspondent. there has been talk behind closed doors, are we nearer a talk behind closed doors, are we nearer _ talk behind closed doors, are we nearer a solutionsome? we are heading — we nearer a solutionsome? we are heading for— we nearer a solutionsome? we are heading for this _ we nearer a solutionsome? we are heading for this vote - we nearer a solutionsome? we are heading for this vote in - we nearer a solutionsome? we are heading for this vote in 24' are heading for this vote in 2a hours. there has been a lot of activity inside the national assembly. we saw the leader of people power party come out and say that he was going t

the cabinet of president yoon suk yeol offered to resign en mass yesterday. so we have leadership turnover in the foreign policy and military administration in south korea as well as the uncertain future of the president himself. host: if you have questions about south korea and what happened now would be a good time to call in. professor arrington is with us for the next 10 to 15 minutes. 202-748-8000 for democrats. 202-748-8001 for republicans. independents, 202-748-8002. we will also look for your texts and tweets. here is one of them for you. this is judy asking "how did this incident of dng martial law reflect on the health of south korea's democratic institutions, and what implications might it have for political polarization going forward?" guest: this is an extreme symptom of political polarization in south korea and a deeply historically rooted polarization that tends to be sort of a division of us versus them rather than tolerating the opposition and trying to work together towards a compromise, which is essential in democracy. it is really about de

people continued to protest, many now calling for president yoon�*s resignation.side the parliament, it was clear he had almost no support. even his own party condemned the imposition of martial law, and the mps voted unanimously to overturn it. president yoon then bowed to what most koreans believed was inevitable and rescinded his declaration. his political future now looks bleak. already unpopular, and with his wife facing a corruption investigation, few think he can survive long in thejob. the events of the past few hours may leave some koreans wondering just how strong their democracy is, though it does appear to have passed this unexpected test. jonathan head, bbc news. my colleague steve lai is in seoul and earlier he asked associate professor in korean studies at the australian national university jay song what options president yoon has left. i would see this as political suicide for him. he was very poorjudgment by the president himself, in a highly ill—advised by his defence minister. the opposition parties all pushed forward the impeachment efforts. i

i asked him about how president yoon may respond to questions he's being asked.sent to yoon is not necessarily asking a series of questions but i understand it is a formal writ, asking for a formal reply or letting him know the court procedure is actually going to go ahead and he actually does not have to answer anything to them. ok, do you think there were signs president yoon was capable of something like this? capable of what? capable of trying to impose martial law and then rescinding it? of course, this is the man who appealed himself to the public with his hand, with writing on his palm, "the king". and also the kinds of things he did for example, 159 people died in etwon. and a lot of people argued the accident occurred because of a lack of attention on the area by focusing on something marginally important. also, his movement, is moving the blue house from where it was to yong san and intervening a lot of investigations against his family and his wife, who was involved in manipulating stock prices. so there have been numerous incidents and now in retrospe

but president yoon's own party, the ruling party, boycotted the vote.t over the last week the pressure has gone up, the mood has changed. and that is because more details about what happened that night have emerged. we've heard that president yoon had ordered that the leaders of the opposition and the chairman of his own party, along with many other members of the national assembly would be rounded up by the army and put in a detention centre. president yoon himself stayed quiet most of the week and then made an impassioned plea on thursday, saying he would fight until the end. it became increasingly clear to his own party that he would not step down, that he would not resign and that he would have to be impeached. and that is what has led to this vote. and laura, people listening to what you've been saying may well wonder what on earth was yoon thinking? because surely this was a gamble that was set to fail. this was a huge political gamble. look, the question that we've been trying to answer for, for since he declared martial law is what on earth was

basically the president of south korea, yoon suk yeol, called a surprise emergency press conference withoutng many of his members of the cabinet or even his own ruling conservative party, people's power party. at the press conference he declared martial law. this is the first time since 1980 that a south korean leander has declared martial law and the first time has -- the first times in south korea became a democracy in 1987. in 2.5 hours after the direct -- after the declaration, the 190 members of the national assembly, the legislative body in south korea, voted unanimously to ask the president to withdraw the declaration. this is basically from 11:00 p.m. until 1:00 a.m., the drama that we watched unfold live with lots of media coverage. the military surrounded the national assembly and officially martial law prohibited political activity by lawmakers. but this 190 out of 300 that made it to vote in the national assembly got through the cordons of police and military to get into the building to vote. the speaker of the national assembly had to climb over a wall to get into the building.

but president yoon remains in power.ch to his office, but they were blocked by police. it's unclear whether mr yoon hears their calls to resign. but until he does, these demonstrations, however peaceful, will only grow. laura bicker, bbc news, seoul. let us speak to sydney seiler, former national intelligence officer for north korea at the national intelligence council at the white house. thank you so much forjoining us tonight on bbc news. it has been an extraordinary past few days in south korea what we have witnessed. do you think that we will now see the impeachment of the president and that is pretty certain? well, as you know, the votes are very close in right now as it stands around 300 members of parliament and the needs to be two thirds majority and i would involve eight members from president yoon�*s party and jumping across the aisle and joining with the opposition. some tried to march to his office, but they were blocked by police. it's unclear whether mr yoon hears their calls to resign. but until he does, t

even how they are going to maintain mr yoon?d in foreign affairs, in reality, what's going to happen? and then there will be more and more protests by people. so even though they are talking about an orderly resignation by president yoon suk yeol, i don't know how long they can hold. eventually, sooner or later, he will have to go. that's my assessment. 50 later, he will have to go. that's my assessment. so youth that the demonstrators - that's my assessment. so youth that the demonstrators who - that's my assessment. so youth that the demonstrators who are | that the demonstrators who are coming out onto the streets may make it the case that he has to leave, when, in the coming days, weeks? leave, when, in the coming days. weeks?— leave, when, in the coming days, weeks? maybe not in the cominu days, weeks? maybe not in the coming days. — days, weeks? maybe not in the coming days, but _ days, weeks? maybe not in the coming days, but once - days, weeks? maybe not in the coming days, but once again, l coming days, but once again,

president yoon now has been impeached.o you think this road is going to be in terms of south korea getting a new president? first of all, it's not the first time korean president impeached by the assembly. it's the third time. the first time the constitutional court reversed the decision. the second time, 2017, park geun—hye was impeached. so this is the third time for korea and now it passed this assembly, now it's going to constitutional court to make a final verdict, so they have about 90 days to make a decision, so if they uphold the decision to impeach him then there has to be a snap election within two months. you mentioned there that the courts have reversed an impeachment decision before. what are the chances that could happen this time around? i think the chance is very low because the evidence is quite clear that he violated the constitution and also i think he has to face criminal charges for insurrection, so i think the chance to reverse by the courts is very low in my opinion. in the end here, how do you think

people continued to protest, many now calling for president yoon's resignation.hile, inside the parliament, it was clear he had almost no support. even his own party condemned the imposition of martial law, and the mps voted unanimously to overturn it. president yoon then bowed to what most koreans believed was inevitable and rescinded his declaration. his political future now looks bleak. already unpopular, and with his wife facing a corruption investigation, few think he can survive long in thejob. the events of the past few hours may leave some koreans wondering just how strong their democracy is, though it does appear to have passed this unexpected test. jonathan head, bbc news. joining me now is jay song. she's an associate professor in korean studies at the australian national university. thanks forjoining me. i want to ask you what your readers on the situation for the president and the options open to him now he seems to have backed himself into a corner and impeachment proceedings have begun? i would see this as _ proceedings have begun? i would see this

that president would be yoon suk yeol. it is a story that might sound, in some ways, familiar to you. a political novice who ran for president in 2022, thanks to high inflation and frustration with the liberal predecessor, yoon narrowly won the election by about 0.25% of all votes cast. he identified as an antifeminist, made a point of courting the south korean male vote, this sort of ministry that exists over there with an openly misogynistic campaign that blamed feminism, for the country's low birth rates. as president, he tried to dismantle the government's gender equity agency. he also tried to raise the country's maximum weekly working hours from 52 to 69 weeks, which, as you can imagine, was deeply unpopular. it is funny how right-wing populists always sort of get around that kind of stuff, right? he always tried to reform the country's medical system which led to months of mass strikes by doctors and their nurses and you will never guess, he and his family got embroiled in a bunch of scandals including allegations o

and tonight, mr yoon has said he's determined to fight on.s ever faced — and its past. people's persistence has paid off, the politicians have listened and tonight, this is their victory. jean mckenzie, bbc news, seoul. we can go live to seoul now and speak tojen moon, an international affairs specialist and freelance journalist. very good to get you on the programme. it's quarter past three on sunday morning with you so i'm gratefulfor you staying up so late to talk to us. quite the picture we're sitting on the streets of seoul with the impeachment of president yoon. it raises a question, who is running the country, what state is a democracy in?— country, what state is a democracy in? it's a huge moment _ democracy in? it's a huge moment for _ democracy in? it's a huge moment for this - democracy in? it's a huge moment for this young i moment for this young environment and practised democracy here in south korea. the last 12 years south korea has been in political turmoil as you watchjune's declaration of martial law sent chills through the

, with members of mr yoon�*s own governing party boycotting the proceedings. just three members of the ruling people power party are inside but the opposition needs eight ppp members to vote for president yoon�*s impeachment in orderfor the motion to pass. technically, mps have just over three more hours to vote on the bill. that's exactly 72 hours after the motion was put in. this is the scene outside the parliament where tens of thousands of protesters have gathered. earlier this week, the president launched a suprise attempt to impose martial law. let's speak to our asia correspondent, rupert wingfield—hayes. what is the latest? no this vote hangs in the balance. whilst they have until midnight tonight, another three hours here, that is the deadline for the book to be completed, we have see _ the book to be completed, we have see it —— heard an announcement from the speaker of the national assembly that the vote may be closed within the vote may be closed within the next 15 minutes, and it looks like they are still some votes short of the 200 needed in orde

yoon. mp's voted to impeach yoon on saturday over his failed attempt to impose martial law.d protests across the country. following his impeachment, the ruling party leader stepped down , apologizing for everyone who had to suffer and fear of martial law. let's talk about this more with california congressman ami bera. congressman, great to see you again. president yoon has not responded to the summons. after the impeachment over the weekend, he said i will not give up, i will do my best for our country. he does not appear to be backing down. what do you think of that? rep. bera: sumi, thanks for having me on. i think we are watching korean democracy take place. the constitution has held. the general assembly had their vote, the national assembly, and now it is going to the court. i think the process will play out. yes, president yoon is pushing back a little bit but he will get a fair trial and we will see if either is impeached fully or gets his powers back. it seems like it will be impeachment. sumi: president yoon pointed to his achievements, a security partnership with

that is a statement from yoon�*s legal team.hroughout the day here on bbc news. tributes forjimmy carter from the heart of american democracy to the traders on wall street who paused in his honour this morning. and at the white house, joe biden ordered the flag at half—staff for 30 days to remember america's longest—living president. whatjimmy carter's an example of is just simple decency — simple decency. and i think that's what the rest of the world looks to america for. i, jimmy carter, do solemnly swear... jimmy carter's one—term presidency was marked by inflation at home and crises abroad, but his landmark achievement was brokering a peace deal between israel and egypt. president—elect donald trump said while he disagreed with mr carter politically, he: former president barack obama said: he was so prompt, the airport onlyjust had time to give him the red carpet treatment. president carter visited the uk in 1997, touring tyneside and bringing a message of economic revival. "1977. howay, the lads! cheering today, king charle

yoon calling for all political activities to cease. opposition leaders rushing into parliament, barricading themselves inside. soldiers storming the building. but just hours after yoon's declaration, south korea's national assembly voted to halt the president's order. and laid late today, president yoon officially backing down, lifting his declaration, pulling the military off the streets. the u.s. blindsided by yoon's move, watching the events with grave concern. >> we want to see these political disputes resolved peacefully and in accordance with the rule of law. >> reporter: the u.s. has nearly 30,000 troops in south korea acting as a deterrence to nuclear armed north korea next door. >> david: let's bring in martha raddatz tonight. martha, with those 30,000 u.s. troops you just mentioned there, the u.s. very concerned with what they witnessed play out today. >> reporter: the white house very concerned, david, but relieved that president yoon reversed course, but this drama is far from over. in fact, tonight, south korea's democrati

yoon gathering for a rally here. many of them very angry at what their president tried and now apparently failed to do. his own party has called for the resignation of the defense minister. the president's chief of staff has resigned and inside opposition lawmakers have tabled a resolution calling for the impeachment of the president. it has plunged this country into political uncertainty. but amid that what is also striking is how little this seems to have impacted ordinary life in korea. the airport was functioning normally this morning and in seoul, businesses were open, people were bustling around in the streets certainly talking about what has taken place, which was definitely a short lived challenge to decades of democracy in this country. ivan watson cnn, seoul. >> well, the white house expressing relief that south korea's president lifted his martial law order, reporters asked president biden about the situation during his visit to angola. reporter mr. president, anything on south korea martial law? >> i'm ju

it would be a natural instinct to see president yoon as vulnerable.n a way that president trump would not want to totally undermine the relationship and undermine a partner domestically. he would have to balance out his instincts in this regard. scarlet: fair enough. what about north korea? we have about 30 seconds. sydney: north korea probably sees a weakening of president yoon, divisions in the u.s. potentially resulting from this. north korea may see an opportunity to wait and let this play out and become worse on its own rather than play into president yoon's hands by doing something that would only prove president yoon was right. scarlet: really appreciate you giving us your analysis. sydney seiler is the korea chair at csis. to follow the latest up dates visit t live go on the bloomberg terminal. this is bloomberg. ♪ it's our son, he is always up in our business. it's the verizon 5g home internet i got us. oh... he used to be a competitive gamer but with the higher lag, he can't keep up with his squad. so now we're his “squad”. what are kevin's

south korean president yoon suk yeol apologises for declaring martial law, as he faces a potential impeachmentote. rebel forces in syria say they have reached the outskirts of the city of homs. islamist fighters have already captured the cities of aleppo and hama after launching their surprise offensive last week. and five years after it was devastated by fire, notre dame cathedral reopens — with world leaders, celebrities and royalty meeting to celebrate. hello. welcome to the programme. three million people in coastal areas of wales and southwest england have been urged to stay indoors because of the danger posed by storm darragh. an emergency alert was sent to people's mobile phones in the affected area last night and a red warning issued by the met office has come into force. winds could reach 90 miles per hour, and heavy rain is also predicted for south wales. our correspondent divya talwar has more. this is the text warned of significant disruption, and urged people to stay indoors if you can. for most serious threat is along the west and south coast of wales and the bristol channel were

it seems like president yoon is finished and now it isjust president yoon is finished and now it is just how displaced through via impeachment, resignation and the timelines and whether we start to get maybe some more instability and protests in the meantime as frustration rises. we are almost a week into the crisis there. give us a sense of what investors are thinking about south korea and how it will impact things going forward. , will impact things going forward-— will impact things going forward. , , ~ ., forward. the big shock and the bi scare forward. the big shock and the big scare of— forward. the big shock and the big scare of last _ forward. the big shock and the big scare of last week- forward. the big shock and the big scare of last week 's - forward. the big shock and the big scare of last week 's few i big scare of last week �*s few hours, six hours of martial law, is pretty much passed now. i think that was the peak uncertainty for investors, was something really that we hadn't seen since the 1970s and 1980s going to happen in south korea. that is passed now and we're not

it for president yoon and how it will play out-— will play out.end, really. on — will play out. it will depend, really, on whether- will play out. it will depend, really, on whether these - will play out. it will depend, - really, on whether these judges are appointed. the court can rule with just six judges, it does not need the nine, but at least six need to vote to remove mr givan from office so it really changes the maths depending on whether you have six taking part or nine and this impeachment of the prime minister here today could really delay these proceedings ——mr yoon. the ruling party could choose to challenge the impeachment and the courts will then have to deal with this first, before they dealt with mr yoon�*s impeachment but it's important to know there is an for the ruling party to try to delay this. they want the opposition leader to be disqualified for running for president when elections come around. he is facing a number of criminal trials and if he is found guilty would be barred from office. these need about six months to pla

translation: i arrest yoon, "they chanted. translation:— arrest yoon, "they chanted., ., translation: i believe i should ste - translation: i believe i should step forward _ translation: i believe i should step forward and _ translation: i believe i should step forward and take _ translation: i believe i should step forward and take action. - step forward and take action. things like this should never happen. translation: �* ., . translation: after watching the news, i translation: after watching the news. i felt _ translation: after watching the news, i felt anxious, _ translation: after watching the news, i felt anxious, and - translation: after watching the news, ifelt anxious, and i- news, ifelt anxious, and i also — news, ifelt anxious, and i also thought that this is such also thought that this is such a national shame. clashes broke out as police tried to hold them back, while helicopters thumped overhead. meanwhile, members of the country's national assembly battled their own military to take back their elected seats — getting there in whatever way they could.

withdraw the martial law, arrest yoon, they chanted.ranslation: i martial law, arrest yoon, they chanted. translation: i believe i should step _ chanted. translation: i believe i should step forward _ chanted. translation: i believe i should step forward and _ chanted. translation: i believe i should step forward and take - chanted. translation: | believe | | should step forward and take action. things like this should never happen. things like this should never ha en. �* ,, �* things like this should never| happen-_ after things like this should never ha en. �* ,, �* after watchin: happen. translation: after watching the news, i happen. translation: after watching the news. i felt — happen. translation: after watching the news, i felt anxious _ happen. translation: after watching the news, i felt anxious and _ happen. translation: after watching the news, i felt anxious and i - happen. translation: after watching the news, i felt anxious and i also - the news, i felt anxious and i also thought— the news, i felt anxious and i also thoug

down, president yoon to stand down, president yoon has remains silent for to be is not offered any official stated that president yoon's official duty as a present should be suspended. that is it departure from the decision made yesterday that the ruling party will reject the impeachment movement. he said that the party starts or brings a change but today marks further uncertainty to the position on his impeachment. so uncertainty to the position on his impeachment.— his impeachment. so do you think there _ his impeachment. so do you think there could _ his impeachment. so do you think there could be - his impeachment. so do you think there could be more i his impeachment. so do you i think there could be more than impeachment? treason charges against the president? if impeachment? treason charges against the president?— against the president? if the resident against the president? if the president gets _ against the president? if the president gets impeached, l against the president? if the president gets impeached, i | president gets impeached, i think there is a high chance that the oppo

hours after the military rule was declared by the president, yoon cheol yoon, an embattled president, saying he declared martial law to defend the country from what he says is the threat of north korean communist forces. accusing some opposition party members in the country's parliament. yoon's conservative party is in a budget dispute with the liberal democratic party. yoon accuses them of paralyzing his administration with 22 proposed cases of impeachment since june. yoon says he will eliminate anti-state forces who have been wreaking havoc on south korea. >> we were not notified of president yoon's announcement in advance. >> the u.s. state department this afternoon, calling it a political dispute. >> our hope is and every hope and expectation is that any political disputes will be resolved peacefully and in accordance with the rule of law. >> president biden is in angola. he was asked about what's happening today in south korea. he said he was just getting briefed on the situation. perry russom abc news, washington. >> meantime, back here, a last minute change in the courtroom in

these are live pictures from seoul outside president yoon�*s residence. protesters are angry and waving flags behind barriers. you might even see some us flags there as well. security forces have been there, holding them back. we know reports overnight from local media safe there were scuffles breaking out between supporters of yoon. we will keep quiet —— close eye on that to see how it develops. president yoon has been summoned three times by investigators for questioning, but failed to appear each time. it is the first time in the country's history an arrest warrant has been issued for a sitting president. the office may also wait for yoon to appear voluntarily, hoping the threat of arrest was sufficient. president yoon�*s lawyers have called the arrest warrant "illegal and invalid". we will keep a close eye on this story as it develops. now, in other news. a state funeral will be held forformer us president jimmy carter onjanuary 9 at the washington national cathedral as part of a national day of mourning for america's longest living president. mr cart

—— mr yoon.called allies have now turned out to show what actually happened, even recordings of conversations between them have been released. so that tells us that mr yoon was in a really desperate situation because of the opposition party leader. before the martial law, already people were on the streets to demand his resignation because many people were not happy. so he was under threat with his wife's scandal and at the same time he did not want the opposition party leader becoming the president. so there was quite a significant evidence coming more and more, showing that mr yoon was quite unhappy with lots of actual threats to the parliamentary members and other members who were opposed. by, members and other members who were opposed-— were opposed. a lot of uncertainty, _ were opposed. a lot of uncertainty, thank - were opposed. a lot of uncertainty, thank you| were opposed. a lot of. uncertainty, thank you for joining us. time to catch up with the sport. australia remain in charge of the f

this was confirmed by the leader of yoon�*s ruling party. his alleged role in president yoon suk yeol�*s declaration of martial law. this comes as opposition mps vow they will continue efforts to impeach yoon. on saturday he narrowly survived an attempt to oust him by just a handful of votes. tens of thousands of people had gathered outside the country's parliament, calling on president yoon to resign. he declared martial law earlier this week — only to reverse just a few hours later amid widspread public and political outrage. our correspondent, laura bicker reports. k-pop music plays. mass protests can feel like pop concerts in korea, even when they're calling for the impeachment of a president. young and young—at—heart sang together, united in the hope that yoon suk yeol will be removed. the president suddenly declared martial law late on tuesday night, and the country's elected politicians were forced to battle their own military to overturn it. today he said sorry, to try to save his career. translation: i sincerely apologise to the cit