The presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Friday that it was in contact with the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) for a proposed meeting between President Lee Myung-bak and the party's leader, Sohn Hak-kyu, which would be one of the most significant political events here in months.
Their meeting, if realized, is expected to set the political tone ahead of the April 27 by-elections. It would mark the president's first bilateral talks with the leader of the DP since September 2008, when he met with Chung Sye-kyun, the head of the liberal party at that time.
"(We) are continuing working-level contact" for the meeting, Cheong Wa Dae spokeswoman Kim Hee-jung said at a press briefing.
She added, "For now, I have no special thing to update," suggesting the much-anticipated Lee-Sohn meeting will not take place anytime soon.
Appearing on a television talk show last week, the president said he was willing to meet Sohn to help break the political impasse. The DP has been boycotting parliamentary sessions since the ruling Grand National Party (GNP) rammed the 2011 budget bill through the National Assembly on Dec. 8.
DP lawmakers believe the president pulled strings and demand his public apology.
In what was seen as a major breakthrough, the floor leaders of the rival parties -- Kim Moo-sung from the GNP and Park Jie-won from the DP -- agreed in a meeting last weekend to open an extra session of the National Assembly on Feb. 14 and arrange an early meeting between the president and Sohn.
Sohn immediately overturned the deal, however, citing a lack of promise from the president to apologize for the unilateral handling of the budget bill. Sohn is apparently seeking a face-saving measure from Lee.
Cheong Wa Dae has urged the DP to rejoin the parliamentary session, which is more urgent, and then start full-scale consultations over the Lee-Sohn meeting.
Sohn, a possible presidential candidate, remains prudent. His aides said his envisioned meeting with the president is a double-edged sword as its results will affect his leadership as head of the DP.
"For Sohn, the meeting with President Lee can be either a political chance or a tomb," a DP official said on the condition of anonymity.
If Sohn fails to produce tangible results, the official added, he will face increased pressure from not only the ruling bloc, but also from his party rivals, such as Chung Se-kyun and Chung Dong-young, both of whom are also said to be hoping to run in the 2012 presidential elections.
Should Sohn draw the president's apology, it would help solidify his standing in a path toward the presidential race.
But time seems to be running out for Cheong Wa Dae and Sohn alike, as popular demands mount for bipartisan steps to deal with soaring inflation, the spread of foot-and-mouth disease and other pending issues. The GNP wants to handle the motions for free trade agreements (FTA) with the European Union and the United States as early as possible.
The DP floor leader, Park, said, "We are waiting for" a meeting between the president and the party leader. He stressed no political conditions should be attached.
Observers said the Lee-Sohn meeting could be held next week, as both Cheong Wa Dae and the DP have little to gain by delaying it