Yoon prepares to move into new residence this month

SEOUL, Oct. 17 (Yonhap) -- Movers have begun to carry boxes out of President Yoon Suk-yeol's home to the new presidential residence in Seoul's Hannam-dong as Yoon and first lady Kim Keon-hee prepare to move at the end of this month, officials said Monday.

Yoon has been commuting to the new presidential office in Yongsan from his private residence in southern Seoul while renovation work has been under way at the new presidential residence.

Yoon relocated both the presidential office and the presidential residence from the Cheong Wa Dae compound to fulfill his campaign pledge to connect better with the public.

"The move to the new residence will be completed within the month," a senior presidential official told Yonhap News Agency by phone. "Items are being moved one by one."

The new residence was previously used as the official residence of the foreign minister and renovation work was practically completed in July.

The move has been delayed due to the need to put security measures in place.

When asked last week when he plans to move, Yoon told reporters he needed to get ready as the safety measures were in place but that he had been "so busy."

The relocation is expected to shorten Yoon's commute to around 5 minutes from the current 10 minutes.

Yoon's chief of staff, Kim Dae-ki, is also reportedly planning to move close to the president into what used to be the official residence of the deputy commander of the South Korea-United States Combined Forces Command.

A presidential official told Yonhap that Yoon is expected to use the banquet hall in the new residence to hold candid talks with politicians and other prominent figures over dinner.

hague@yna.co.kr
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