Making sense of the sudden resignation of South Korea’s national security chief



Analysis Making sense of the sudden resignation of South Korea’s national security chief Kim Sung-han’s sudden departure shows an anxious ROK president seemingly willing to break off ties at moment’s notice John LeeMarch 30, 2023 SHARE COPY LINK FACEBOOK X LINKEDIN MASTODON U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken meets with former ROK National Security Adviser Kim Sung-han, March 6, 2023 \| Image: U.S. Department of State Flickr Kim Sung-han abruptly resigned from his post as South Korean national security adviser on March 29. The surprise move comes just weeks before President Yoon Suk-yeol’s state visit to the U.S. and speaks to the importance that Yoon has placed on the event. But it could signal a temperamental leadership style in the presidential office, which could eventually spill over into Seoul’s relationships with its most important partners. When announcing his resignation, Kim said he succeeded in helping Yoon improve South Korea’s ties with the U.S. and Japan and would return to his previous job at Korea University. Prior to © Korea Risk Group. All rights reserved. No part of this content may be reproduced, distributed, or used for commercial purposes without prior written permission from Korea Risk Group. LATEST ANALYSIS 01South Korea’s missile defense push raises new questions over wartime stocks 02South Korea bank hacks expose weak links beyond core financial systems 03Lee-Zelensky feud exposes South Korea’s widening Ukraine policy dilemma 04Lee Jae Myung’s ‘pacemaker’ strategy tests South Korea’s leverage with Trump 05Trump’s Korea investment victory lap masks safeguards Seoul still controls 06North Korean POW dispute tests Seoul-Kyiv trust and future Ukraine policy 07South Korea’s CPTPP push exposes the cost of turning trade gains into consensus 08AI storage boom gives South Korea battery makers an EV overcapacity lifeline

Analysis

Making sense of the sudden resignation of South Korea’s national security chief

Kim Sung-han’s sudden departure shows an anxious ROK president seemingly willing to break off ties at moment’s notice

John LeeMarch 30, 2023

Making sense of the sudden resignation of South Korea’s national security chief

U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken meets with former ROK National Security Adviser Kim Sung-han, March 6, 2023 | Image: U.S. Department of State Flickr

Kim Sung-han abruptly resigned from his post as South Korean national security adviser on March 29. The surprise move comes just weeks before President Yoon Suk-yeol’s state visit to the U.S. and speaks to the importance that Yoon has placed on the event.

But it could signal a temperamental leadership style in the presidential office, which could eventually spill over into Seoul’s relationships with its most important partners.

When announcing his resignation, Kim said he succeeded in helping Yoon improve South Korea’s ties with the U.S. and Japan and would return to his previous job at Korea University.

Prior to

Making sense of the sudden resignation of South Korea’s national security chief

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John Lee