President Lee Jae-myung said on the 9th (local time) that "my term is clearly limited by the Constitution."
During a state visit to France, President Lee said this while explaining, at a meeting with Koreans in Paris that day, why he is handling many overseas trips early in his term. It is the first time President Lee has publicly stated his position directly on a constitutional amendment related to a consecutive term.
President Lee said, "I have set plans to make many overseas visits early in my tenure," adding, "There are several reasons. First, summit diplomacy offers a country known as an open trading nation, the Republic of Korea, good opportunities for trade, investment, economic cooperation, and security cooperation, and it also has the effect of increasing vitality among overseas Koreans."
He added, "In any case, because my term is clearly limited by the Constitution, in the end, you have to start early to be able to enjoy the effects for a long time."
As the opposition has continued to claim that President Lee is pushing a constitutional amendment with the intent of allowing consecutive or multiple terms, some interpret his remarks as an indirect response.
Earlier, People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok said on Facebook that day, "President Lee Jae-myung brought up 'constitutional amendment' even in a media interview in France, and Democratic Party leader Kim Min-seok argued for a 'constitutional amendment to reform the power structure' in his speech as leader of the negotiation bloc," adding, "There is only one reason the president is hanging on: a 'consecutive-term constitutional amendment.'"