Live: President Yoon to attend impeachment trial again as key witness testimonies begin

President Yoon Suk Yeol will be attending his impeachment trial hearing for the second time.

The series of witness testimonies will begin as the Constitutional Court continues to hear and deliberate on whether Yoon's martial law order last month calls for his removal from office.

For more, we have our Oh Soo-young standing by at the Constitutional Court.

1. From today, justices will begin hearing testimonies from key witnesses, beginning with former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun.

Yes, from 2:30PM, the former defense minister will testify, the first of the eight witnesses approved by the Court so far.

Both sides the National Assembly and President Yoon will have the opportunity to question him.

Kim Yong-hyun is one of the key figures implicated in planning and executing the martial law.

Considered Yoon's right-hand man, Kim initially said he'd take responsibility for the chaos that ensued.

But lately, there have been discrepancies with Yoon's narrative, on key matters under review by the Court.

So his testimony and interaction with Yoon may be interesting to watch.

But President Yoon and Kim might not confront each other directly during the fourth hearing.

At the previous hearing, the National Assembly requested measures such as installing a screen or temporarily excusing President Yoon from the courtroom to ensure that witnesses could testify without intimidation.

2. So what would be the biggest questions posed to Kim?

The questions will likely focus on two aspects.

First, the martial law proclamation released on December 3rd set out various decrees including a ban on political activities.

That decree was one of the main grounds for Yoon's impeachment.

President Yoon’s side has argued that the document was not produced by Yoon but "mistakenly copied by Kim.”

Kim’s legal team says while the former minister drafted the initial version, it was "of course reviewed by the President.”

Justices are also likely to focus on a note the Finance Minister received, instructing him to draft a budget for an emergency legislative body to presumably replace the elected parliament after shutting it down under martial law.

Yoon on Tuesday claimed he did not write the note and said he thinks it was written by the Defense Minister.

So the justices will take these accounts into their deliberation when deciding whether Yoon's martial law was unconstitutional.

3. While he's refusing to cooperate with investigators who arrested him for questioning, the President seems determined to attend the impeachment trial.

Yes. Yoon's lawyers say he will if possible attend all future hearings which have been scheduled until February 13th.

He's filed without success an appeal against his arrest, and major figures implicated in the suspected insurrection have also been arrested so he is looking cornered when it comes to the criminal investigation against him.

By attending future hearings, President Yoon could emphasize his narrative and might even directly question witnesses if necessary.

Also, he may be more determined to appear at the Constitutional Court as a means of further rallying his supporters, emboldened by the latest polls which show growing numbers back the ruling party, and his non-impeachment.

Soo-young, thanks for the coverage.

Do keep up updated throughout the day.