Elon Musk, ‘Trump Ally’, Reacts Swiftly to South Korea’s Shocking Martial Law Declaration

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and soon-to-be head of the Department of Government Efficiency in Donald Trump’s second administration, expressed astonishment at the news of martial law being declared in South Korea.

On December 3 (local time), Elon Musk reacted with surprise multiple times upon encountering the news on the social media platform X.

When a user posted, "President Yoon Suk-yeol has declared martial law," Musk responded with two quotation marks ("") to express his astonishment. Later, when another post stated that the South Korean National Assembly had unanimously passed a resolution demanding the repeal of martial law, Musk left a brief comment, "Wow."

In response to another user's question, "What is happening in South Korea?" Elon Musk replied, "Yeah, this is shocking."

Musk's reaction was retweeted hundreds of times, sparking significant interest among X users in South Korea's martial law situation and its background. However, Musk has not released an official statement on the matter.

Earlier, on the afternoon of December 3, President Yoon Suk-yeol held an emergency briefing at the Yongsan Presidential Office, declaring, "To defend the Republic of Korea from the threat of North Korean communist forces, eradicate shameless pro-North, anti-state forces that rob our citizens of their freedom and happiness, and protect the constitutional order of liberty, I am declaring martial law."

However, following the National Assembly's resolution to annul martial law, President Yoon announced the lifting of the decree and the withdrawal of martial law forces at 4:27 a.m. on December 4, just six hours after his initial declaration.

The last time martial law was declared in South Korea was 45 years ago, in 1979, during the aftermath of the assassination of former President Park Chung-hee in the October 26 incident.