Anchor: Rival political parties have agreed to launch on Thursday a three-way consultative body with the government aimed at seeking ways to overcome the ongoing martial law and impeachment crisis. The agreement comes as the rival parties continue to butt heads over the opposition's threat to initiate steps to impeach Acting President Han Duck-soo if he does not greenlight the special probes into insurrection allegations against President Yoon Seok Yul and controversies surrounding the First Lady by Tuesday's Cabinet Meeting. 
Choi You Sun reports.

Report: A consultative body between the rival political parties and the government is set to launch this week for discussions on ways to stabilize state affairs following the December 3 martial law decree.

Floor leaders from the ruling People Power Party(PPP) and the main opposition Democratic Party(DP), who participated in a meeting presided over by National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik on Monday, agreed to launch the body on Thursday.

While Acting President Han Duck-soo, the speaker, and heads of the rival parties will attend the inaugural session, the two sides' floor leaders are expected to lead working-level consultations on the agenda and other matters.

The parties continued to butt heads over the opposition leveraging its parliamentary majority to make legislative demands, or threatening to seek impeachment of the acting president.

PPP acting chief and floor leader Kweon Seong-dong accused the DP of attempting to take Han hostage to have everything done its way and made clear the impeachment motion, if submitted, would require support from 200 in the 300-member Assembly, considering Han is currently the acting president.

The DP, for its part, ramped up pressure, saying it will push ahead with impeachment procedures, unless the acting president promulgates by Tuesday two parliament-passed bills on special counsel probes into the December 3 insurrection and allegations against first lady Kim Keon-hee.

Meanwhile, parliamentary confirmation hearings for three Constitutional Court justice nominees, Ma Eun-hyeok, Jung Gye-seon, and Cho Han-chang, will be held for two days from Monday.

Amid a boycott from the ruling party, which opposes appointment of justices by the acting president, the main opposition said it intends to adopt their hearing reports on Tuesday, before passing their confirmation motions this week.
Choi You Sun, KBS World Radio News.