South Korea’s opposition parties demanded the dismissal of Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo from his position over a retracted claim that 70 percent of funds going into the Kaesong Industrial Complex (KIC) funded North Korea’s nuclear and missile development. 

Hong has found himself the center of controversy since making the claim on February 12, which if accurate would have put South Korea in breach of UN sanctions. The Unification minister has since tried to clarify the statement, in what appeared to be a series of mixed messages from the South Korean government.

Experts explained that political pressure on the minister