China Hopes Situation in S Korea After Impeachment Will Stabilize

China hopes that the situation in South Korea stabilizes as soon as possible in the wake of the parliament voting in favor of impeachment of President Park Geun-hye, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said during a briefing on Friday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, the South Korean parliament voted to impeach President Park Geun-hye with 234 votes in favor and 56 votes against. South Korean Prime Minster Hwang Kyo-ahn will now serve as the country's interim leader.

"We pay close attention to the situation in South Korea, but as regards the impeachment, it is a matter of inner policy of the country. The government of China never intervenes in inner policy of foreign countries. But as a close neighbor we are hoping that the situation in the country stabilizes as soon as possible," Lu Kang explained.

The spokesperson underlined that China highly appreciates the actions that president Geun-hye took for the partnership between China and Korea, but added that her decision to station American ABM system THAAD undermines China’s security interests in the region.

However, speaking of the future of bilateral relations between the countries, Kang expressed hope that they would maintain stable development.

Political scandal around the president broke out in late October when media reported that Park allowed Choi Soon-sil, her friend and "shadow adviser," who held no official post, to edit her speeches thus letting her influence the country's policy. Moreover, Choi was suspected of pressuring South Korean big corporations and extorting money from them for her non-commercial funds.