Taiwan denies report of South Korea seeking martial law support

Taipei, July 23 (CNA) Taiwan's Presidential Office has rejected a report by a South Korean newspaper saying that a military intelligence official under now-impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol sought Taiwan's support for South Korea's declaration of martial law in December 2024.

In a statement, Presidential Office spokesperson Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said the claim made by The Hankyoreh report that a South Korean official requested Taiwan's support for martial law, declared by Yoon on Dec. 3, 2024, was "fabrication with obvious malicious intent."

Yoon's declaration of martial law was overturned by the parliament hours later, but the incident plunged South Korea into a political crisis and led to Yoon's downfall.

Kuo said routine security exchanges between Taiwan and its democratic partners have been ongoing for years, focusing primarily on regional security rather than the internal affairs of any country.

Taiwan "[does] not interfere in or comment on the internal affairs of other countries," Kuo said, adding that the government demanded a prompt correction of the report.

Kuo's comments came shortly after the South Korean media cited an anonymous military source as saying that Moon Sang-ho, a former intelligence commander now ensnared in the martial law investigation, traveled to Taiwan at the end of November to meet with his local counterpart.

The source claimed the purpose of Moon's trip was to seek Taipei's support for Yoon's martial law plan, though the report also cited Moon as denying the claim.

The report surfaced during an ongoing investigation by a South Korean special prosecution team into foreign exchange crimes involving military personnel and intelligence operations allegedly linked to last year's declaration of martial law.