ANKARA

South Korea's Vice Premier and Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok resigned late Thursday ahead of an impeachment motion in parliament, according to media reports.

Choi announced his resignation minutes before the National Assembly was to vote on a motion to impeach him, Yonhap News Agency reported.

"I apologize to the people that I am unable to continue my duties amid grave internal and external economic conditions," said Choi.

Choi also served as an acting president after former Prime Minister and Acting President Han Duck-soo was impeached in December by parliament for refusing to appoint three judges to the Constitutional Court.

In the latest impeachment motion, the opposition Democratic Party accused Choi of delaying the appointment of the ninth justice to the Constitutional Court, among other allegations as an acting president, according to the news agency.

Choi was expected to resume the role of acting president after South Korea’s acting President Han Duck-soo resigned earlier Thursday, signaling he is likely to compete in the June 3 presidential election.

Han announced his decision during a news conference in Seoul.

"Thinking of the weight of the responsibility I carry at this grave time, after thinking long and carefully about whether such a decision is in fact right and inevitable, I decided that if this is the only way, I must take it," he said.

South Korea is set to hold elections after former President Yoon Suk Yeol was removed from office for his botched martial law bid.​​​​​​​