President orders task force on Gwangju air base relocation

President Lee Jae-myung on Tuesday directed the establishment of a six-party task force to resolve the dispute over the relocation of the Gwangju military airport. The task force will include representatives from the Presidential Office, Gwangju City, South Jeolla Province, Muan County, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and the Ministry of National Defense.

At a town hall meeting with residents of Gwangju and South Jeolla held at the National Asian Culture Center in Gwangju, President Lee made the announcement after hearing concerns that Muan County is opposed to hosting the relocated base. He stated, “If everyone makes appropriate compromises, the result can be much better for all,” and added, “It is right for the central government to take responsibility.”

He also emphasized balanced regional development. “Korea is overly concentrated in the capital region, and most of the problems we face stem from that overcrowding,” Lee said. “If we make better use of our territory through balanced development, many of those problems can be significantly mitigated.”

In response to a citizen’s suggestion to reinstate the national bar exam, President Lee said, “I personally sympathize with that to some extent,” adding, “I once worried that it might turn into a modern version of the hereditary privilege system, not a meritocratic one.” However, he noted, “The law school system has been in place for a long time now, so abolishing it would not be easy.”

President Lee’s visit to the Honam region followed recent outreach efforts to the PK (Busan-Gyeongnam) region. On June 20, he attended the launch of an AI data center in Ulsan, and the following day, instructed the relocation of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries to Busan by the end of the year. Earlier that day, he also visited Sorokdo National Hospital in Goheung, South Jeolla Province, becoming the first sitting president to do so.


Hoon-Sang Park [email protected]