South Korean MPs begin impeachment proceedings against president Yoon Suk Yeol after thwarting his attempt to impose martial law. Plus, how Syria’s instability could hurt Russia’s military capabilities, a roundup of nordic news and the latest from the design world. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
You're listening to the Briefing, first broadcast on the 4th of December, 2024 on Monocle Radio.
Hello and welcome to the Briefing, broadcasting to you live from Studio one here at Midori House in London.
I'm Georgina Godwin.
Coming up on today's show, we bring you up to speed with the political chaos in South Korea unleashed by the declaration of martial law and the rapid turnaround in the face of widespread opposition.
Russia has been supporting Syria militarily since 2015.
What does the loss of Aleppo mean for Moscow?
We'll check in with our team at the world's biggest luxury travel market in Cannes and we'll have a roundup of design stories as well as the latest news coming out of the Nordic region.
All that right here on the Briefing with me, Georgina Godwin.
We start the show in South Korea, where events have been moving rapidly since the President Yoon Suk Yul, declared martial law late last night.
Well, Aidan Foster Carter is honorary Senior Research Fellow in Sociology and Modern Korea at Leeds University, and he joins us now.
Aidan, many thanks for coming on the show.
Explain how events unfolded.
I'll try.
I mean, it's less than 24 hours and it's all sort of so completely unexpected.
It started with a not previously announced TV broadcast by the President where really unthinkably to almost any modern South Korean, he imposed martial law, citing unspecified anti state forces, quote, unquote, supposedly pro North Korean.
That produced an immediate reaction.
Members of parliament, especially the opposition, rushed to the National Assembly.
Quite a lot of them got in, or maybe some were there already, I don't know.
But it was nighttime before the soldiers got there because, you know, the, as soon as the martial law announcement was made, soldiers started moving towards there.
And anyway, 190, which is nearly two thirds of them, were there.