It was revealed this month that South Korea's former defense minister was appointed ambassador to Australia, but was barred from leaving the country by authorities over allegations made during his tenure as defense minister.
A presidential official said, ``We were not aware of the fact that he was prohibited from leaving the country,'' and this is an unusual situation in which the issue of whether or not he will be able to remain in the post, and whether he will be appointed as an ambassador.
South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on the 4th of this month that Lee Jong-seop, who served as defense minister until October last year, will be appointed ambassador to Australia.
The aim is to further strengthen the cooperative relationship between the two countries in the fields of national defense and defense industry.
However, South Korean media reported that it was revealed that former Defense Minister Lee had been prohibited from leaving the country by the authorities.
It was reported on the 7th that he had been questioned on suspicion of abuse of authority over allegations that he pressured military officials who were investigating the death of a Marine Corps soldier.
South Korean news agency Yonhap News reported that he had already received consent from the Australian government to accept him as an ambassador.
A presidential official said, ``We were not aware of the fact that he was banned from leaving the country,'' and it is unclear whether he will be able to continue in his post.
This is an unusual situation regarding the appointment of an ambassador, with opposition parties in South Korea criticizing him and calling for his appointment to be rescinded.