Lee Jun-seok, the candidate from the Reform Party, on the 19th mentioned the controversy over Lee Jae-myung, the candidate from the Democratic Party of Korea, who said, "We should say 'thank you' to China," and launched an offensive regarding the so-called 'pro-China controversy'.
On this day, candidate Lee Jun-seok attended the presidential candidate TV debate and directly targeted Lee Jae-myung, stating, "The 'thank you' remark is overly pro-China."
In response, candidate Lee Jae-myung stated that it was "a very simplistic thought," adding, "We need to judge based on national interests and do not need to get too deeply involved in the relationship between Taiwan and China." He continued, "It is good to respect the current situation and maintain good relations with other countries."
Thus, when Lee Jun-seok expressed concern, asking, "When international disputes arise, isn't this how our country thinks as well?" candidate Lee Jae-myung replied, "Separate general cases from special cases. You are overly exaggerating this. This is about conventional diplomacy and trade, and if a war breaks out, the situation will also change. Please do not judge it so extreme."
Candidate Lee Jun-seok then remarked, "What will you do in case of a similar situation, such as in the Taiwan Strait? If your attitude towards diplomacy changes day by day, it creates a lack of trust and causes anxiety in foreign relations."
In response, candidate Lee Jae-myung said, "When issues arise, we must judge flexibly according to the situation, and the criteria for judgment should be national interests."
Furthermore, candidate Lee Jun-seok claimed that in response to Lee Jae-myung's pledge to establish large-scale solar and wind power and offshore wind power plants in the Yeongnam and East Coast regions, "This is a policy favorable to China in a wind power market that is largely dominated by China."
Earlier, candidate Lee Jae-myung had pledged to establish a data center using offshore wind power at the solar plant site in Haenam, Jeollanam-do.
Candidate Lee Jun-seok questioned, "Currently, in the case of wind power, 66% of development and operation, 83.4% of manufacturing, and 100% of financing have gone to foreign countries, most of which is to China," and asked, "I wonder why there is continued favorable talk about a wind power market that China largely controls, despite the high cost of electricity production?"
He continued, "The conditions for a data center require stable electricity supply, which must be drawn from Yeonggwang or Yeosu, and if it is not for China, then who is it for?"
In response, candidate Lee Jae-myung said, "It is very inappropriate to continually try to label me as pro-China." He explained, "Renewable energy is fundamentally about intermittency, which is an irregularity, and I think it is a misconception to think it is impossible because you can create a system called ESS that saves when there is an abundance and supplies base load power when there is a shortage."