Yoon to deliver public address on Thursday

President Yoon Suk Yeol will deliver a public speech this week to unveil his policy vision and address a series of controversies, the presidential office and sources said Monday.

The public address scheduled for Thursday, accompanied by a press conference, comes as Yoon marks the midpoint of his single five-year term this week.

Yoon is expected to announce his policy vision for the second half of his term as well as measures to reform his administration, sources said.

The president also plans to use the press conference to address a series of intensifying controversies, including allegations of interference by Yoon and first lady Kim Keon Hee in the ruling party’s election candidate nomination, as well as scandals involving Kim, sources said.

Ruling party leader Han Dong-hoon has urged Yoon to issue a public apology and reshuffle aides at the presidential office amid a growing scandal over alleged inference in the party’s nomination of a candidate for the parliamentary by-elections in 2022, triggered by a recording of a phone call between Yoon and a suspected power broker named Myung Tae-kyun.

The press conference comes as Yoon’s approval rating has fallen to a new low of 19 percent in a recent poll.

“Reaching the midpoint of his term, (Yoon) will inform the public about past achievements as well as the future direction of his administration,” a presidential official said.