SEOUL, South Korea — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol denied wrongdoing on Thursday in a burgeoning influence-peddling scandal involving him and his wife that is severely hurting his approval ratings and providing political munition to his rivals. The political firestorm coincides with South Korea facing a slew of critical foreign policy issues, such as Donald Trump’s election win to become the next president of the United States and North Korea’s reported entry into the Russia-Ukraine war. The opposition party alleges that the conversation proves Yoon provided Myung with political favors in return for free surveys. Lee, a firebrand lawmaker who narrowly lost to Yoon in the 2022 presidential election, is undergoing four separate trials over corruption and various other allegations. Yoon noted that North Korea’s arsenal has significantly advanced since Trump’s diplomacy with Kim collapsed in 2019.

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Persons: Yoon Suk, Donald Trump’s, Yoon, Kim Keon Hee, Myung Tae, Myung, “, ” Yoon, ”, Kim Young, Lee Jae, Lee, Yoon —, Shigeru Ishiba, Trump, Kim Jong, Kim, ” “, Biden Organizations: South, People Power Party, Democratic Party, firebrand, Trump, North Locations: SEOUL, South Korea, United States, North, Russia, Ukraine, Washington, Tokyo, Seoul