Seoul, December 30: South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Monday returned to the Blue House, the country’s traditional presidential office, ending more than three years in which the compound had been abandoned by his predecessor in a symbolic break with past administrations.
Lee commuted to Cheong Wa Dae, as the Blue House is known in Korean, for the first time since taking office in June, marking the first presidential use of the historic site since the final day of former President Moon Jae-in’s term on May 9, 2022.
Lee’s conservative predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol had relocated the presidential office to a converted Defence Ministry complex in Yongsan, central Seoul, shortly after assuming office, arguing that the move would make the presidency more accessible and democratic.
Lee won a snap presidential election in June following Yoon’s removal from office over a brief declaration of martial law in December 2024, an episode that plunged the country into its deepest democratic crisis in decades.
Yoon, now jailed, declared martial law during a standoff with Lee’s liberal Democratic Party, which controlled parliament and blocked much of his legislative agenda. The measure lasted only hours after lawmakers broke through a military blockade and voted to lift it.
Yoon was impeached later that month, formally removed from office by the Constitutional Court in April and re-arrested in July. He faces criminal charges including rebellion, which carries a possible life sentence or the death penalty.
Lee has spent weeks overseeing the relocation of the presidential office back to Cheong Wa Dae, a move widely seen as an effort to erase the legacy of his disgraced predecessor.
Nestled on the lower slopes of a mountain behind Seoul’s historic Gyeongbokgung Palace, Cheong Wa Dae covers about 250,000 square metres and has served as South Korea’s presidential office for most of the post-war period.
Yoon had spent about $40 million shifting operations to Yongsan, dismissing concerns over cost and security. He later opened parts of Cheong Wa Dae to the public as a tourist site, attracting millions of visitors.
Ahead of Lee’s arrival on Monday, officials raised the presidential flag featuring two phoenixes at midnight, restoring the compound’s official status. Guards saluted as Lee’s motorcade passed through the gates, while supporters nearby waved South Korean flags and chanted his name.
Lee’s office later released footage of the president holding a tea meeting with senior aides inside the Blue House. The presidential office said Lee will continue commuting from his current official residence elsewhere in Seoul until the residence itself is moved back to Cheong Wa Dae at a later, unspecified date.
