South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has defended his failed attempt last week to impose military rule on the country as the leader of his party signals it is preparing to support his impeachment on Saturday.

In only his second public appearance since his doomed martial law gambit, Yoon on Thursday morning lashed out at critics, calling them “anti-state forces”, and suggested North Korea had helped leftwing opposition parties secure victory in parliamentary elections.

“I will fight to the end to prevent the forces and criminal groups that have been responsible for paralysing the country’s government and disrupting the nation’s constitutional order from threatening the future of the Republic of Korea,” Yoon said.