South Korean President Lee returns to presidential palace avoided by predecessor

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean President Lee Jae Myung On Monday, he traveled to the country’s traditional presidential palace, Cheong Wa Dae, for the first time since taking office in June, more than three years after his ousted predecessor. Yoon Suk Yeol The Presidential office was moved to the Ministry of Defense campus.

Before Yoon began his presidency in a converted Defense Ministry building, it was the first time a president had been to Cheong Wa Dae since May 9, 2022, the last day of former President Moon Jae-in’s term.

Lee, who won a snap presidential election in June after Yoon was ousted over a brief declaration of martial law in December 2024, has spent weeks moving the presidential office to Cheong Wa Dae, also known as the Blue House, as he seeks to erase the legacy of his now-jailed predecessor.

Cheong Wa Dae is located on the lower slopes of a mountain north of Seoul and covers an area of ​​approximately 250,000 square meters (62 acres) behind the historic Gyeongbokgung Palace. The site, which has undergone various renovations over the decades, has served primarily as the country’s presidential office since the government was established following independence from Japanese colonial rule at the end of World War II.

Arguing that the hillside Cheong Wa Dae was too isolated from the public, Yoon reportedly spent nearly $40 million to move the presidential office to various buildings on the Ministry of Defense campus in Yongsan in central Seoul, ignoring concerns about security and costs and claiming the move would make his presidency more democratic. After the relocation, he opened parts of Cheong Wa Dae to the public as a tourist attraction attracting millions of visitors.

Yoon, a staunch conservative, later triggered the country’s backlash. The deepest democratic crisis in decades When he declared martial law on December 3, 2024, during a dispute with Lee’s liberal Democratic Party, which controlled the legislature and blocked much of his policy agenda.

Martial law lasted only a few hours after enough MPs broke the military blockade and voted to lift the measure. Yoon was dismissed later that month. He was dismissed in April He was arrested again in July by the decision of the Constitutional Court. He now faces serious charges, including sedition, which could possibly carry life imprisonment or the death penalty.

Ahead of Lee’s commute, officials raised a presidential flag featuring two phoenixes at Cheong Wa Dae at midnight, marking the palace’s return as the official presidential office. Guards saluted Lee’s motorcade as it passed through the compound’s gates, while dozens of nearby supporters waved the South Korean flag and chanted his name. Lee’s office later released a video showing Cheong Wa Dae holding a tea meeting with senior aides in one of his rooms.

Lee will commute from his current presidential residence in another part of Seoul until moving back to Cheong Wa Dae at an undetermined date, his office said.