SEOUL, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) - Conservative politicians in South Korea are trying to politicize security issues, with early presidential race looming large ahead of the constitutional court's ruling on the motion to impeach President Park Geun-hye.
Since the impeachment bill was passed on Dec. 9, the court has been deliberating whether to permanently force Park out of office or reinstate her. The final decision is forecast to be made before the middle of next month.
A presidential election must be held in 60 days if the court upholds the bill. The rejection will delay the election to an originally scheduled date in December.
Amid the high possibility for the upholding, conservative politicians have been trying to politicize security issues as support for them tumbled with the presidential impeachment, caused by a corruption scandal that has derailed the conservative bloc in recent months.
Escalated tensions on the Korean Peninsula and greater importance placed on a military alliance with the United States tended to grant election victories to the conservative camp.
This time around, politicians of the ruling Liberty Korea Party and its splinter conservative Righteous Party attempt to increase public fears toward the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and tout Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system.
The governing party's floor leader on Wednesday called on the Park government to complete the deployment of the U.S. missile shield, which Seoul and Washington agreed to in July last year, as rapidly as possible.
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