South Korea ex-commanders jailed up to 18 years over martial law

SEOUL, South Korea - South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's chief of staff, Kang Hoon-sik, tendered his resignation on Monday, according to the presidential office. This comes after a series of drops in Lee's approval ratings, which have been attributed in part to unsuccessful ministerial nominations.

On Monday, Lee stated that he had not yet decided whether to accept Kang's resignation. The move is intended to allow Kang to assume full responsibility as the president's top aide following Lee's acknowledgment at a press conference last week that public concerns about his administration reflect his own shortcomings, as reported by Yonhap News Agency.

The resignation also follows criticism over recent government appointments, including the withdrawal of nominations for former Gender Equality and Family Minister candidate Yong Hye-in and former Justice Minister candidate Kim Seung-won. In a survey released on Monday by pollster Realmeter, Lee's approval rating showed a slight increase of 1 percentage point to 34.8%, marking the first uptick in 10 weeks.