The U.S. Department of Justice has appointed former FBI Director Robert Mueller as special counsel for the ongoing probe into Russian interference inΒ the 2016 U.S. election.
This appointment comes on the heels of the dismissal of the most recent FBI Director, James Comey, last week. Mueller served as FBI director under President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama, before being replaced by Comey in 2013.
The turmoil in the U.S., considered to be South Korea’s closest ally, is fomentingΒ at a time of increased political tension aroundΒ the Korean peninsula. Between North Korea’s most recent ballistic missile tests and China’s political pressure on South KoreaΒ over the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, recently-elected South Korean president Moon Jae-in may need to navigate these difficult situations with less-than-ideal support from the U.S. government.
By T. Kim
