To each their own: how and why Macron replaced his prime minister, while Georgia gained notoriety with its president.

The South Korean Parliament recently supported the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-yeol. It is worth noting that this is the second attempt at impeachment – on December 7, the ruling party "People Power" boycotted the voting. Now, 204 of its members have voted "yes" for the early removal of the head of state from power.

The acting president will now temporarily be the country's Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. He has already promised to make every effort to "ensure political stability in the current crisis situation."

Recall that the political crisis in South Korea began in early December after President Yoon Suk-yeol unexpectedly declared a state of emergency (the first since 1979) and called it a necessary measure to protect constitutional order from "communist forces and destructive elements," as well as threats from North Korea. The state of emergency included a ban on all political activities, including the operation of parliament and political parties.

Almost immediately after the announcement of the state of emergency, 190 deputies managed to break into parliament, where they promptly voted to cancel the state of emergency: a simple majority was sufficient for this. As a result, Yoon Suk-yeol was forced to cancel the state of emergency – nearly six hours after he had imposed it. At the same time, the opposition initiated the impeachment procedure. Additionally, local police began an investigation against the president on suspicion of attempting a coup.

The Constitutional Court is expected to put an end to this story. It is up to Themis to decide whether to confirm the impeachment or restore Yoon Suk-yeol to office. The case may take up to 6 months to review. If the Constitutional Court confirms the president's removal, early elections will be held in the country. However, it is already clear that Mr. Yoon will not leave without a fight. Recently, he stated that he would fight until the end, accusing the opposition of "abusing impeachments." Yoon Suk-yeol is the second president from the conservative party to face impeachment in South Korea; Park Geun-hye was removed from office in 2017.

Since the start of Putin's "special operation," South Korea has strictly limited its assistance to non-lethal types, such as demining equipment or helmets. Gradually, however, Seoul began to hint that they might change this approach. "As North Korean military forces gain experience in modern warfare, this could become a serious problem for our security. Therefore, we will adjust the level of support from former humanitarian assistance depending on the extent of North Korean military engagement. We do not rule out supporting Ukraine with weapons," said the currently politically suspended South Korean leader Yoon Suk-yeol at a press conference on November 7. Just a few weeks later, on the 27th of the same month, a Ukrainian delegation led by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov visited Seoul, where they were personally received by Yoon Suk-yeol.

According to several Asian media outlets, the head of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, Rustem Umerov, shared intelligence regarding the potential deployment of North Korean troops to Russia and requested support for military actions in Ukraine. In particular, as reported by the Hong Kong newspaper South China Morning Post (SCMP), citing an unnamed informed source, the Ukrainian delegation brought a comprehensive list of requests to Seoul, which included anti-aircraft missiles and artillery guns. So far, however, no significant signs of support from official Seoul have been observed.

Meanwhile, the electoral college in the Georgian parliament predictably elected footballer Mikheil Kavalashvili as the new president, who was nominated for the position by the ruling party "Georgian Dream" (GD) and supported by the de facto head of the Georgian state, billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili. He received 224 votes from members of the electoral college, according to the local Central Election Commission's count. Kavalashvili was the only candidate for the presidency. A total of 225 electors participated in the elections. The ballot of deputy Ada Marshania, who did not vote for Kavalashvili, was declared invalid.

In total, the electoral college consisted of 300 parliamentarians and deputies of various levels, 211 of whom were delegates from "Georgian Dream." To win the election, a candidate needed to secure a majority of votes, i.e., at least 151 votes out of 300. The 61 opposition deputies in the 150-seat Georgian parliament, along with the small opposition groups in the representative bodies of autonomies and municipalities, could not influence the voting results. Understanding this, they declared a boycott of the event.

Kavalashvili is known, among other things, for his statements against the "global war party," which, according to him, "is trying to open a second front against Russia in Georgia." On the eve of the elections, some representatives of the Georgian creative elite, who had previously actively supported GD, distanced themselves from the ruling party. Among them were singer Irma Sokhadze and filmmaker Keti Dolidze. One reason for this was the revelation that the future head of state and supreme commander not only lacks a higher education but also does not have a complete secondary education – he completed only eight grades of high school.

At the same time, the fifth president Salome Zourabichvili, who was elected by popular vote in 2018, has engaged in vigorous political activity and has no intention of stepping down. She calls the parliamentary elections held on October 26 "totally falsified" and, as a result, considers the government, parliament, and electoral college illegitimate. Ms. Zourabichvili asserts that she "will remain in office until the election of a legitimate parliament."

Recently, the U.S. announced a new package of sanctions against Georgian citizens "responsible for undermining democracy." Most of the names are not disclosed. It is known that visa restrictions have been imposed on 20 deputies, ministers, and representatives of law enforcement agencies. At the same time, to the disappointment of the opposition, the sanctions once again did not affect the honorary chairman of GD, the aforementioned billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili. By the way, he recently, as a citizen of France and a Knight of the Legion of Honor, spoke on the phone with French President Emmanuel Macron. They reportedly discussed the political intrigues in Georgia, while France is also experiencing its own political "earthquakes." However, their amplitude has currently minimized. This occurred after the appointment of 73-year-old François Bayrou, head of the "Democratic Movement" (MoDem) party, as Prime Minister of the Fifth Republic. Bayrou, a former minister and multiple-time presidential candidate, is a fervent Catholic, father of six children and grandfather of twelve grandchildren. In 2017, he abandoned his presidential ambitions in favor of the young candidate Macron and briefly served as his Minister of Justice.

However, it is unlikely that François Bayrou will openly support Emmanuel Macron's policies, notes Le Monde. On Friday, December 13, at the last meeting before his appointment, he spent nearly two hours with the current occupant of the Élysée Palace in a rather tough discussion, as sources from the publication claim. The fact is that Bayrou is entering office in a situation that is quite unfavorable for Mr. Macron and for the ruling party as a whole. He will need to find approaches to politicians across the spectrum to work without fear of a vote of no confidence.

"Let's say, the goodwill of the center is almost in his pocket. With the socialists, the politician has always been rather close, uniting against the right-wing Sarkozy supporters. Bayrou also has good relations with Marine Le Pen, whom he even once supported in her presidential campaign. Not by his authority, however, but by providing her with the necessary recommendation to be included in the electoral list, albeit just one of the required 500, and 'in the name of pluralism.' But undoubtedly, the far-right leader remembers this. Marine Le Pen has already warned that the 'continuation of Macronism' will lead to 'deadlock and failure' and demanded that the new prime minister 'do what his predecessor was unwilling to do: listen to the opposition to create a reasonable and thoughtful budget,'" emphasizes Le Figaro.

However, the newspaper summarizes, at least there are no open declarations of war that have emerged from the far-left camp and their allies immediately after the news of François Bayrou's appointment. Indeed, the rhetoric of representatives of these political currents is, to put it mildly, not favorable towards the newly minted prime minister. "Not politics, but boulevard theater," stated parliament member from the Green party (EELV) Marine Tondelier. At the same time, the head of the parliamentary group "Unsubmissive France" (LFI) in the National Assembly, Mathilde Panot, directly threatened with an imminent and swift vote of no confidence against Mr. Bayrou's future government.

It is extremely important to emphasize that the new French prime minister not only unwaveringly supports Emmanuel Macron's policy of aiding Ukraine but is also one of the few politicians of the Fifth Republic who publicly supported the idea of sending troops to Ukraine.

It is evident that in this regard, François Bayrou's appointment as prime minister is a clear positive for Kyiv, as he will not block Mr. Macron's initiatives regarding support for Ukraine in its war with Putin's Russia. However, how long the Bayrou Cabinet can avoid a vote of no confidence is a big question.

By the way, a significant question, or rather confusion, was raised on Sunday, December 15