2017年CRI Domestic and international issues await South Korean new president

 

The winner of South Korea's presidential election is also being tasked with healing a nation that's split deeply between the left and right.

Moon Jae-in (R) of South Korea's Minjoo Party and his wife cast their votes at a polling station in Seoul May 9, 2017. South Korean on Tuesday held the 19th presidential election. [Photo: Xinhua]

CRI's Min Rui has more on the domestic and external issues the new South Korean government will be facing.

Unlike many other countries, South Korea's Presidential election system is based who receives the most votes through one round of voting, meaning no run-off.

And unlike previous elections, the leadership transition is virtually immediate¹, with the new President due to be inaugurated immediately after the election commission confirms the results.

He's then going to appoint a prime minister, who will need parliamentary approval, as well as his main cabinet positions.

Piao Jianyi, senior research fellow at the National Institute of International Strategy with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences says the next South Korean President is likely to face political challenges almost immediately.

"No matter who takes office, the new president and his party will not be able to secure an overwhelming majority of seats in the parliament. So with a contentious² Parliament which consists more seats taken by opposition³ party, I think the new president will face a lot of difficulties when pushing through new approaches."

Political watchers are also going to closely follow any decisions on the deployment⁴ of the American missile defense⁵ battery, known as THAAD, as it was a major issue during the campaign.

Piao Jianyi says he expects THAAD will be one of the main areas of concern for the new President.

"When it comes to international issues for the new government, I think THAAD should be ranking top or second on the list. And there is also a growing threat posed by North Korea's nuclear weapons. These two issues are connected. But it's all depending on who will take office."

There are diverse stances within South Korean politics about THAAD and its underlying⁶ deployment: Namely North Korea.

Some are open to talks with North Korea; some support the deployment of the anti-missile system on South Korean soil; and there are others want to take a more proactive, potentially dangerous stance against North Korea.

Piao Jianyi says whatever approach is taken, it's likely to be a departure from the previous administration.

"Different presidents could lead to different solutions, could end in opposite poles in extreme. The positive solution could be the new president wants to open talks with North Korea and mend relationships. But the negative could be acting⁷ against the North Korea. There is also possibility that the new president standing⁸ in the middle. But no matter what happens, there is one thing for sure, that the former president Park Geun-hye's foreign policy won't last."

Beyond security, domestic concerns are also running high in South Korea, including a slowdown in economic growth, rising household debt and soaring unemployment rates among the country's youth.

1 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

2 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

3 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

4 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

5 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

6 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

7 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

8 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。