In Response to "Stop Harassing Chungrae"... Lee: "Chung Cheongrae, a Comrade Who Fought with Me Through the Night of Rebellion"

After Lee Jae-myung and Chung Cheong-rae’s Dinner Meeting Was Criticized

"Please Don't Misunderstand or Misinterpret, I Didn't Harass Him"

On October 3, President Lee Jae-myung described former Democratic Party leader Chung Cheong-rae as "a comrade who fought alongside me through the era of darkness and death, when even our very lives were threatened, and through the nights of rebellion."

In the early morning of the same day, President Lee made these remarks in a post on X (formerly Twitter), where he shared a post criticizing his meeting with former leader Chung. The post included statements such as "Stop harassing former leader Chung" and "It's too cruel."

President Lee Jae-myung is having dinner with former Democratic Party leader Chung Cheong-rae at the Blue House on October 1, 2026. Photo by Yonhap News.

President Lee explained, "Right after the party convention, former leader Chung said he wanted to meet more often, and when he was hospitalized, I promised during a consolation phone call that we would meet in person. That is why, after returning from attending the UN General Assembly and a trip to Mexico, we had a dinner together. He was not forced by me to meet, nor did I harass him in any way, so I hope there will be no misunderstandings or misinterpretations."

President Lee and former leader Chung had a dinner at the Blue House on October 1. Kang Yoo-jung, Chief Presidential Spokesperson, said, "Over the course of four hours, they had an honest conversation and formed a deep consensus on various national issues and internal party matters."

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