Yoon Suk Yeol disputes insurrection charges and calls martial law decreee an ‘act of governance’ ahead of expected second impeachment vote

South Korea’s president has defended his martial law decree as an act of governance and denied insurrection charges, rejecting the opposition-led impeachment attempts against him and investigations into last week’s move.

In a televised statement, Yoon Suk Yeol said: “I will fight to the end, to prevent the forces and criminal groups that have been responsible for paralysing the country’s government and disrupting the nation’s constitutional order from threatening the future of the Republic of Korea.”