South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and Lee Jae-myung, leader of the opposition Democratic Party, held their first formal meeting since Yoon’s inauguration 720 days ago on Monday afternoon. The meeting followed weeks of failed negotiations over agenda items and proceeded without predefined topics. Lee began with a 15-minute statement, open to the press, where he criticized the administration’s failure to address the difficult economic situation and “autocratization.”

He demanded a comprehensive policy overhaul, touching on the R&D budget, doctor strikes, and the overuse of presidential veto power, asking Yoon to apologize for his previous vetoes. Lee also asked Yoon to agree to the special investigation into a marine’s death last year, the Itaewon crowd crush in 2022, and to expedite pension reform.

Why It Matters

The two-hour meeting concluded without a joint statement or significant progress. Lee called for a special investigation into a marine’s death — a controversy that led to the resignation of Yoon’s ambassador to Australia earlier this year — and to “clear up issues related to his family,” likely in reference to allegations against the first lady, but Yoon remained unresponsive, according to the DP and the Presidential Office. Yoon also opposed the DP’s proposal for universal cash vouchers, preferring targeted aid instead.

Both leaders showed some willingness to compromise on the Itaewon crowd crush investigation and doctors’ strikes, agreeing on the need to increase medical school quotas and to reexamine the Itaewon incident to better support the bereaved families. However, on the latter issue, the DP expressed disappointment in Yoon’s stance, saying that the president on Monday “practically rejected” the special act that he vetoed before, reiterating its legal problems.

After the meeting, the DP noted little change in Yoon’s governance approach. Meanwhile, the Presidential Office highlighted the meeting’s symbolic value as a “first step” toward enhanced communication and cooperation. While Lee framed his remarks with an alleged intention to help the president become “successful” through cooperating with the opposition, the result of the meeting points to unbridgeable gaps in views between the two and potentially continued hostile relations between the government and the opposition in the coming years.