[Joo Young-jin's News Briefing]
When citing this interview, please explicitly state the program name 'SBS <Joo Young-jin's News Briefing>.' SBS holds the copyright.
■ Broadcast: SBS <Joo Young-jin's News Briefing> Mon–Fri (14:00–15:20)
■ Host: Anchor Joo Young-jin
■ Dialogue: Yoon Sang-hyun, People Power Party Lawmaker
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● Interview
Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker
"Comradely loyalty to Oh Se-hoon... We share the same values"
"At dinner, I asked Oh Se-hoon to become a politician who grows humble with power"
"I do not agree with the media labeling me 'pro-Oh Se-hoon'"
"I stand with Oh Se-hoon not out of personal liking, but because we share the same values"
"I am not a factional politician blindly following a specific politician"
"My calling is to play the role of a
Beckenbauer, sketching the blueprint for great conservative unity"
"Opposed Yoon's impeachment out of fear it would impeach not just an individual, but the liberal democratic system"
"Was actually 'non-Yoon,' but was talked about as
'pro-Yoon' during the impeachment"
"Conservatives must go together... Must unite as 'Oh-Dong-Seok-Jang' for the greater cause"
"Great conservative unity is difficult, but creating it is what politics is about"
"Jang Dong-hyeok must exercise leadership to create great conservative unity"
"Defense Minister's remark 'Can we trust the U.S. military?' was wrong; he must apologize"
"OPCON transfer conditions not yet met... It is premature"
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▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: We have People Power Party Lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun here with us. Welcome.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: Hello.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You always wear a red necktie.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: Well, you know where my affiliation lies.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: The signature color of the People Power Party. Recently, your appearance in front of the court during Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon's appellate sentencing hearing caught the cameras of the press and drew considerable attention. How did you come to be there at that time?
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: Actually, I went not only on the day of the sentencing hearing, but also on the day of the closing arguments.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You went before that as well.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: I went purely with the thought that, as a political colleague, I should be a source of strength when he is going through difficult times. Isn't that what comradely loyalty is all about?
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Comradely loyalty.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: And in fact, Mayor Oh Se-hoon and I share many of the same values. For instance, our party's change, innovation, and unity, outward expansion toward the moderates, the capital region, and the younger generation, as well as a rational, reform-minded, and sensible alternative conservatism. Because our orientations align. He was convicted in the first trial, wasn't he? So there was a great deal of political speculation, and amid all that, isn't it the responsibility of a senior politician to stand by and protect him? In that sense, I accompanied him.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You had dinner together as well.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: Yes, we did. He hosted a dinner for the people who came to the court. So we celebrated his safe return; we offered many words of blessing and comforted him a great deal. And so, we had dinner together in a very warm and friendly atmosphere.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: And there was an acrostic poem as well.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: An acrostic poem. Regarding the acrostic poem, Lawmaker Lee Jun-seok originally asked, "Hyung, shall we make an acrostic poem on Oh Se-hoon?" and he said he asked ChatGPT, saying it was an acrostic poem for Oh Se-hoon used in the past. So it went: 'Oh,' like an ottogi (roly-poly toy). 'Se,' weathering the storms of the world. 'Hoon,' a warm breeze is blowing. It went something like that. And then they asked me to offer a toast, and since he had come through alive, I congratulated him first. Then I requested that he become a politician who grows even more humble before power, asked him to devote himself solely to city administration, and deliver results. At the same time, within the sturdy fence of conservatism, I called on him to serve as a reliable barrier and pillar presenting visions such as the party's orientation—as I mentioned earlier, an alternative rational conservatism, outward expansion toward moderates, the capital area, and youth, and conservative change, innovation, and unity. So my toast was 'Bi-Haeng-Gi' (airplane).
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: What does that mean?
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: If we share a vision (bi), act together (haeng), a miracle happens (gi).
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: A miracle happens.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: That is how I made the toast with 'Bi-Haeng-Gi.'
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: As mentioned in the media, some view Lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun as a pro-Oh Se-hoon lawmaker. Do you agree with this assessment?
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: No, I do not agree.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You do not agree?
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: In the past, around 2021 and 2023, didn't I offer bitter criticism to the Yoon Suk Yeol government without hesitation? Even back then, I was referred to as a core figure of the non-Yoon faction. And didn't I also campaign against the president's impeachment? I believed that the liberal democratic system itself must not be impeached. The fear that if the Democratic Party took power, the values and foundation of the Republic of Korea would collapse—aren't we witnessing that right now after all? So because of that, people called me pro-Yoon. And while I have always been close with Mayor Oh Se-hoon, standing with Mayor Oh is not because of personal affection for Oh Se-hoon as an individual, but because we share the values that Mayor Oh advocates—the outward expansion toward moderates, the capital region, and the youth that I mentioned, as well as change, innovation, unity, and alternative conservatism. Because we share these values, I stand with him. I am not a factional politician who blindly follows a specific politician, whether it is President Yoon Suk Yeol or Mayor Oh Se-hoon. While I am close with Mayor Oh, I do not build factions or stay inside a closed leadership through that. I find my own role. I believe my calling is to play the role of a Beckenbauer, sketching the blueprint for great conservative unity together with Mayor Oh Se-hoon, Lawmaker Lee Jun-seok, and Lawmaker Han Dong-hoon.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: If I ever met Lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun, I really wanted to ask this question. You mentioned opposing the impeachment earlier. The Constitutional Court's decision to impeach means it clearly ruled that the declaration of emergency martial law violated the Constitution and the law. However, you stated earlier that you opposed the impeachment based on the judgment that if the Democratic Party took power, democracy would be shaken and its foundations damaged. But isn't that a deeply political judgment? Clearly, the harm suffered by our people due to the declaration of emergency martial law was against the law. If so, shouldn't you not have opposed the impeachment?
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: Regarding opposing the impeachment: On December 9, 2016, the National Assembly voted to impeach President Park Geun-hye. Then on March 10, 2017, the Constitutional Court upheld her dismissal. Look at President Moon Jae-in, who took power afterward. During that administration, political power became dictatorial, and the economy—didn't it completely collapse? The foundations of diplomacy and national security crumbled. Values and foundations collapsed. That is why lawmakers from our party who voted in favor of impeachment at the time, including former leader Kim Moo-sung, Joo Ho-young, Kweon Seong-dong, Na Kyung-won, and many others—didn't they vote for impeachment back then? This time, they all opposed impeachment together. Why was that? Ultimately, it was out of fear that impeaching President Yoon Suk Yeol could go beyond impeaching an individual and become an impeachment of the liberal democratic system itself. However, even while knowing that, wondering what solution could be a win-win for both President Yoon Suk Yeol and us, in February of last year, before the Constitutional Court's final statement, I actually sent attorneys twice to propose that the president's final statement include a constitutional amendment shortening his term and stating he would step down quickly. That both ruling and opposition parties genuinely draft a constitutional amendment and he step down immediately. I had the initiative that if we reached such a political solution, we could run the presidential election on a win-win footing where both President Yoon and we survive, and that we could win, but that did not materialize properly.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You have been in politics continuously and are now a five-term lawmaker.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: That is correct.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: However, there is a widespread assessment that under every administration, Lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun seems to have stood on the side of the mainstream. Is that accurate?
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: During President Park Geun-hye's tenure, I was called a core pro-Park figure. But I was not nominated by the party then, was I? I returned as an independent. During President Yoon Suk Yeol's tenure, I was a core figure of the non-Yoon faction. But around the impeachment, starting after the general election, I stayed around President Yoon with the belief and conviction that we must somehow make President Yoon a successful president. So, while political circles talk about me going from non-Yoon to pro-Yoon in that manner, in truth, I did it not to save the president, but to save the Republic of Korea.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Listening to what you say, regarding President Yoon Suk Yeol...
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: I am telling you that I acted with pro-Republic of Korea values.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: It seems that is what you wanted to say: when President Yoon Suk Yeol held power, you were non-Yoon, but in the impeachment crisis following the declaration of emergency martial law, you opposed the impeachment and were assessed as pro-Yoon. It sounds like that is what you wanted to express. Understood. After all, what is always important is the judgment of the viewers and voters. Regarding the great conservative unity, the biggest reason Mayor Oh Se-hoon's appellate acquittal drew attention was the question of how to achieve great conservative unity. There is Leader Jang Dong-hyeok, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, Lawmaker Han Dong-hoon, and former Leader Lee Jun-seok—how can they be brought together? Do you believe, Lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun, that everyone must go together?
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: We must all go together. We must not head toward minor factional alliances that exclude certain people or form separate cliques. We must all go together. Leader Jang Dong-hyeok must also go together. People talk about the 'Oh-Dong-Seok' alliance—Oh Se-hoon, Han Dong-hoon, and Lee Jun-seok—but we must expand beyond that to an 'Oh-Dong-Seok-Jang' alliance. Shouldn't we build a conservative big tent? What is the reason we must unite? It is for the greater cause. Over the past one year and four months, hasn't the Lee Jae-myung administration severely undermined the Republic of Korea's liberal democratic republic in many ways? It has shaken our values and foundations. Then, we must somehow stand against the Lee Jae-myung administration and restore the liberal democratic republic of the Republic of Korea. To do that, we must unite. That is precisely the greater cause and rationale. Therefore, bringing personal feelings into the greater cause of uniting could truly make one a historical sinner. I think we must hold this conviction.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: What you are talking about is rationale and necessity. In reality, the whole world already knows that Leader Jang Dong-hyeok dislikes Lawmaker Han Dong-hoon, and through recent media reports, many people have learned that Lawmaker Lee Jun-seok also dislikes Lawmaker Han Dong-hoon. And likewise, Leader Jang Dong-hyeok considerably dislikes Lawmaker Han Dong-hoon and the pro-Han faction as well.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: That is indeed a very realistic issue. There are past resentments and mutual distrust, and everyone has different political calculations.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Playing the role of glue...
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: But that is why I am saying I will play the role of a Beckenbauer of conservative unity. Creating such conservative unity—although realistically difficult, creating it is precisely what politics is, and that is what a leader is. Indeed, look at the United States in 1860. Didn't Abraham Lincoln achieve unity between the North and the South? As soon as he became president, he appointed all the political rivals who had competed against him in the Republican presidential primary to his Cabinet: Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, Secretary of State William Seward, Attorney General Edward Bates, and Secretary of the Treasury Salmon Chase—he integrated them all. I ask him to become someone with such capacity. I keep calling on our Leader Jang Dong-hyeok to become an agent of change, innovation, and unity, and to exercise platform-style leadership that creates a political space and builds a platform for such great conservative unity.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun, didn't you major in American politics and international politics and earn a doctorate? Did you study at George Washington University?
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: Georgetown and George Washington University.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Universities located in Washington, D.C., in the United States. I remember you publishing books back then.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: That is right.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Understood. But in order to achieve great conservative unity, wouldn't Leader Jang Dong-hyeok have to step down from the leadership of the People Power Party to create room? Would that be possible once the regular session of the National Assembly ends?
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Actually, if it goes into a power struggle like telling someone to step down or resign...
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Space needs to be created.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: Space would be created, but would they just sit still? They certainly could not sit still. Therefore, the best thing is for Leader Jang Dong-hyeok himself to become the agent of change, innovation, and unity. This will strengthen his own leadership as party leader and benefit our party and the Republic of Korea. It is for our camp. I hope he makes such a major shift in thinking. So I ask him to create a platform, to create a political space. Even if he really does not want to do it, I hope he realizes that within that reluctance lies a noble cause, rationale, and historic task. That is why I am telling him to listen carefully to what someone like me has to say.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Understood. Lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun, are you currently on the National Defense Committee?
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: I was on the National Defense Committee, and now I have moved to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You moved to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee? By the way, Lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun, it seems you voiced your conviction regarding Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul's remarks. Recently, in response to questions during the parliamentary audit, Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul said, "Can we trust such a U.S. military?" in connection with a war with Iran.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: Those words were extremely inappropriate. Questioning whether we can trust the U.S. military when fighting against North Korea—this is something a defense minister should never say. If the minister of national defense responsible for the South Korea-U.S. alliance says such things, how anxious will the public feel? What would our South Korean and U.S. officers and troops stationed on the front lines of the DMZ think? How disheartened would they be? What is the core pillar of the South Korea-U.S. alliance? Ultimately, isn't it trust between South Korea and the United States? And trust in our integrated defense capabilities and deterrence, yet he made remarks that undermine that. Therefore, the minister must apologize.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: He must apologize. What are your convictions on the issue of the OPCON (wartime operational control) transfer?
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: Regarding the OPCON transfer, in April 2015, we met with President Park Geun-hye. Our Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee members stated that the OPCON transfer must be based on conditions. And as far as I know, around April 2015, she met with President Obama. So conditions for OPCON transfer were needed. Thus, at the SCM—the annual South Korea-U.S. Security Consultative Meeting—in December 2016, a conditions-based OPCON transfer was specified. However, the conditions have not yet been met. Does South Korea have the combined defense capability to command and control the headquarters of the Future Combined Forces Command after the transfer? The basic perception of the U.S. military is that we have not reached that point yet, and we agree with that. Everyone wants sovereignty and self-reliance, of course. People keep saying that 'OPCON transfer is self-reliance,' but that should not be fitted to a president's timetable. We must evaluate based on the conditions for the OPCON transfer: for example, South Korea's genuine ability to lead and control the Combined Forces Command and the future command; the capability of the South Korea-U.S. alliance to deter North Korea's advancing nuclear and missile capabilities; and the security environment on the Korean Peninsula. Evaluating these three conditions, I say that it is still premature.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Understood. Since the OPCON transfer is a matter of great importance, we hope the opposition party will also put their heads together to find a sound solution.
▶ Yoon Sang-hyun / People Power Party Lawmaker: We will do so.
▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Thank you. We appreciate your insights.
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