White House "I didn't get prior notice of martial law...grave concern"

[Anchor]
The White House expressed grave concern after the incident, saying it had not been notified in advance of Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of martial law.

The U.S. State Department and Defense Department briefings drew great attention as questions about martial law in South Korea poured in.

This is Washington correspondent Kwon Jun-ki.

[Reporter]
President Joe Biden, who finished his speech in Angola, Africa, said he was briefed when asked if he had been briefed on the situation of martial law in South Korea.

[Joe Biden / U.S. President: (Mr. President, please say something about martial law in South Korea.) "I just received a briefing. I didn't hear the details.]

The White House said it had not been informed in advance of Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of martial law and was seriously concerned about the situation in South Korea.

Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, who has overseen the Biden administration's Asia policy, also expressed grave concern about declaring martial law in South Korea.

[Kurt Campbell / U.S. Deputy Secretary of State] We are watching the developments in South Korea with grave concern. We are in contact with counter parts at all levels in Korea.

At the U.S. State Department briefing, questions about the situation of martial law in Korea were poured out from the beginning.

[Reporter Question: There was no safety notice for Americans in Korea hours after martial law was declared, is there a reason for the delay?]

[Reporter Question: (President Yoon) held a democracy summit in March, was martial law a surprise announcement or has there been a voice of concern in the past?]

[Vedant Patel/U.S. State Department deputy spokesman] Diplomatic talks will, of course, be private. What I can tell you is that I was not informed of President Yoon's announcement in advance.]

Asked if there were any signs of North Korea taking advantage of the situation, the U.S. Department of Defense said it was closely monitoring the situation, but said there was no change in the U.S. Forces Korea's posture.

This is YTN Kwon Jun-ki from Washington.


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