South Korea's Yoon impeachment trial suspended in absence

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea's Constitutional Court delayed the start of suspended President Yoon Seok-yeol's impeachment trial for several minutes on Tuesday after the embattled leader failed to appear in court.

One of Yoon's lawyers has said the president, who has been holed up in his hillside villa in Seoul for weeks, will not attend, saying authorities were trying to detain him, preventing Yoon from expressing his side at the trial.

Acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung-bae said the next trial is scheduled for Thursday and if Yoon is also absent, the proceedings will be continued by his legal team on his behalf.

Outside court, Yoon's lawyer, Yoon Kab-keun, said the president would decide whether to appear in person on Thursday after discussing defense strategy.

The Constitutional Court must decide within 180 days whether to remove Yoon or restore his presidential powers.

Yin also faces a criminal investigation on suspicion of rebellion, with authorities seeking an arrest warrant after he ignored a summons to appear for questioning.

His lawyer Yin said that “a legal warrant must exist and… must be lawfully produced and executed,” which does not mean “jumping a fence or damaging property without producing a warrant,” and reiterated that the current The warrant is invalid.

Yin declared martial law on December 3 but withdrew it about six hours later, plunging one of Asia's most dynamic democracies into a period of unprecedented political turmoil.

Yoon's chief of staff said Tuesday that Yoon's office could consult with investigating authorities to avoid conflicts during the execution of the warrant for Yoon's arrest.

Presidential Chief of Staff Chung Jin-seok said in a statement on Tuesday that Yoon could travel to a third location outside of his fortified residence, or a visit to his home could be arranged so that investigative authorities could question Yoon.

Investigating authorities, including the Corruption Investigation Office (CIO) and police, received a re-issued arrest warrant from a South Korean court after their first attempt to detain Yoon for questioning failed following a confrontation with the president and security officials earlier this month.

The chief information officer, police and the Presidential Security Service (PSS) met on Tuesday to discuss the execution of the latest arrest warrant, the investigating authority said in a statement.

At the meeting, police and the CIO requested cooperation from the Department of Public Safety to execute the warrant peacefully and safely and are awaiting a response.

The Defense Ministry said on Tuesday it would not mobilize troops responsible for the president's security in connection with the execution of Yoon's arrest warrant.