‘Hanmi Jeongsang Tonghwa Nuseol’ Former Lawmaker Kang Hyosang Also Guilty in Appeal Trial

‘Moon Jae-in-Trump Call’ South Korea Visit Schedule Revealed in National Assembly... 6 Months Imprisonment, 1 Year Probation

Former Liberty Korea Party (now People Power Party) lawmaker Kang Hyo-sang, who was prosecuted for leaking the contents of a phone call between the South Korean and U.S. presidents, was sentenced to a suspended prison term again in the appellate court.

Former National Assembly Member Kang Hyo-sang. / Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

The Seoul Central District Court Criminal Appeals Division 2 (Chief Judge Kang Hee-seok) on the 17th sentenced Kang, who was charged with leaking diplomatic secrets, to six months in prison with a one-year suspension, the same as the first trial. The court also maintained a four-month suspended sentence for A, a counselor at the former U.S. Embassy in South Korea, who was co-defendant.

The court dismissed the appeal, stating, "Kang claims there was no intent to leak diplomatic secrets, that he is protected by parliamentary immunity as a lawmaker, and that his actions were lawful as a legitimate act, but these legal arguments were appropriately judged in the first trial."

Earlier, Kang was prosecuted for receiving and leaking the contents of a phone call between former U.S. President Donald Trump and the South Korean president regarding Trump's visit to Korea, which was a diplomatic secret, from A, who was working at the U.S. Embassy in Korea on May 9, 2019. The prosecution viewed that Kang disclosed the secret through a press conference and social media.

On the same day he spoke with A, Kang held a press conference at the National Assembly Press Hall, stating that "President Moon Jae-in requested a visit to Korea immediately after President Trump’s visit to Japan (May 25?28)." He also claimed that former President Trump responded, "We can consider a meeting with President Moon in front of the U.S. military base in Korea."

The government immediately refuted this as "an unfounded claim that violates diplomatic protocol." Former President Trump visited Korea on June 29?30 of that year. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through a joint inspection with the Blue House, detected signs that A leaked the call contents to Kang, who was his senior from high school, and reported the case to the prosecution.

The first trial ruled, "Considering the schedule of the National Assembly standing committee to which the defendant belonged, it is difficult to see that the content of this case was related to official duties performed in the National Assembly, such as interpellation, and the contents of the call between the South Korean and U.S. presidents regarding the U.S. president’s visit to Korea should be kept secret until officially announced due to diplomatic trust between countries," sentencing Kang to six months in prison with a one-year suspension.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.