SEOUL (Reuters) - The father of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, renowned economist Yoon Ki Jung, died at age 92 on Tuesday, the presidential office said.
The late Yoon, formerly a professor emeritus at Yonsei University, had been hospitalised for an unspecified illness and died shortly after the president delivered a speech marking the anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule.
"The president went to the hospital after the Liberation Day ceremony this morning, and stayed by his father's side when he passed away," Yoon's office said in a statement.
Yoon was scheduled to depart on Thursday for the first-ever standalone trilateral summit with U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at Camp David in Maryland, where they will launch a series of joint initiatives on technology, education and defence, senior U.S. officials said.
Yoon's office said he has decided to hold a private funeral with only family members so that there would be "no vacuum in state affairs," without elaborating.
An official at his office said there was no change in Yoon's trip for the planned summit.
In South Korea, the oldest son plays a major role in family funerals, which usually last three days but could go longer in some cases. Yoon has a younger sister.
A prominent economist, the late Yoon gained fame for his research on South Korea's inequality and economic growth using statistical methods.
(Reporting by Hyonhee Shin. Editing by Gerry Doyle)
