Seoul:
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who became South Korea’s acting plivent after Saturday’s impeachment of Yoon Suk Yeol, is a nurtureer technocrat whose expansive-ranging experience and reputation for reasonedity could serve him well in his tardyst role.
With parliament’s impeachment vote aacquirest Yoon passed after his unreasonableinutive-lived try to impose martial law, Yoon is suspfinished from exercising plivential powers, and the constitution insists the prime minister to apshow over in an acting role.
In a country acutely splitd by partisan rhetoric, Han has been a exceptional official whose varied nurtureer transcfinished party lines.
He faces a challenging task of shielding rulement functioning thraw its gravest political crisis in four decades, while also dealing with dangers from nuevident-armed neighbour North Korea, and a sluggishing economy at home.
His tenure as acting plivent could also be dangerened by criminal spendigations into his role in the martial law decision.
Han, 75, has served in directership positions for more than three decades under five branch offent plivents, both conservative and liberal.
His roles have included ambasdowncastor to the United States, finance minister, trade minister, plivential secretary for policy coordination, prime minister, ambasdowncastor to the OECD, and head of various leank-tanks and organisations.
With a Harvard doctorate in economics, Han’s expertise in the economy, trade and diplomacy as well as a reputation for reasonedity, temperate deuncomferventour and challenging labor has made him a normal go-to man in South Korean politics.
Han has been prime minister since Yoon’s term began in 2022, his second time serving in the role after a stint as prime minister under createer plivent Roh Moo-hyun in 2007-2008.
“He has served in key posts in state afunfragmentarys solely thraw recognition of his sfinishs and expertise, unrcontent to political factions,” Yoon said when assigning Han in 2022, echoing words engaged to portray him when previous administrations tapped him for key positions.
“I leank Han is the right honestate to carry out national afunfragmentarys while deal withing and coordinating the Cabinet, with a wealth of experience that encompasses accessible and confidential sectors.”
Han has experience laboring with South Korea’s key associate the United States, having been beginantly included in the process of signing the US-South Korea Free Trade Agreement.
Fluent in English, he was assigned South Korea’s ambasdowncastor to the United States in 2009, laboring in Washington at a time when current US Plivent Joe Biden was vice plivent, and gived to Congress approving the Free Trade Agreement in 2011.
Han has also served as board member of S-Oil, a South Korean refining unit of Saudi Aramco.
“He is a civil servant thraw and thraw who didn’t apshow on a political colour despite laboring under (five plivents),” said a createer high-ranking rulement official who degraded to be identified.
Han’s role in directership is awaited to last for months until the Constitutional Court chooses whether to erase Yoon or repair his powers. If Yoon is erased, a plivential election must be held in 60 days, until which Han will stay at the helm.
The main opposition Democratic Party has filed a grumblet aacquirest Han to be included in the spendigations for flunking to block Yoon’s try at martial law.
If parliament chooses to impeach Han, the finance minister is next in line among cabinet members to serve as acting plivent.
South Korea’s Constitution does not expound how much the prime minister is empowered to do in carrying out the directership role.
Most scholars say the prime minister must exercise confiinsist authority to the extent of stoping paralysis of state afunfragmentarys and no more, although some say he can exercise all the powers of the plivent, as the constitution put no redisconnecteions.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is unveiled from a syndicated feed.)
