{
  "id": 6082719,
  "title": "(LEAD) Justice minister nominee denies illegal COVID-19 treatment lobbying allegations",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/07/lead-justice-minister-nominee-denies-illegal-covid-19-treatment",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-07T02:06:18.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yonhap News",
    "slug": "yonhap-news",
    "url": "https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20260907002951315"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "SEOUL, Sept. 7 (Yonhap) -- Kim Seung-won, the nominee for Justice Minister, has firmly denied claims that he engaged in illegal lobbying for a COVID-19 treatment in 2021. While he acknowledged that he should have been more careful when making his request for the medication, Kim insisted that he never made an illegal solicitation to the food and drug ministry.\n\nAccording to Kim, he called the food and drug safety minister at the time to expedite the treatment's clinical trial approval, as COVID-19 treatments were being prioritized during the pandemic. He added that the prosecution decided not to formally charge him due to the inability to definitively determine that his request was illegal solicitation.\n\nProsecutors confirmed that there was no unlawful solicitation or unfair review of the treatment's clinical trial approval, and no charges were brought against Kim or any public officials connected to the case. Kim has faced increasing scrutiny over the allegations, with independent Representative Han Dong-hoon releasing alleged recordings of Kim and a broker discussing the lobbying efforts. Kim accused Han of leaking investigative material in a politically motivated attack and demanded that he appear at his confirmation hearing.",
  "summary": "SEOUL, Sept. 7 (Yonhap) -- Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won on Monday deni...",
  "key_points": [
    "Kim Seung-won denies illegal lobbying for COVID-19 treatment in 2021.",
    "He called food and drug minister to expedite clinical trial approval.",
    "Prosecutors found no evidence of unlawful solicitation, no charges filed."
  ],
  "editors_take": "The development clears the way for Kim Seung-won to potentially assume the Justice Minister role, as he has maintained his stance that his actions were not illegal solicitation.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}