President Lee Jae Myung called upon the National Assembly to approve the upcoming year's budget, presenting an unprecedented 728 trillion won ($525 billion) expenditure proposal that represents an 8.1 percent rise from the current year's allocation. This request comes as the president highlighted significant transformations in international trade patterns and the swift advancement of artificial intelligence technology.
This budget proposal represents the first complete annual budget under the Lee administration and stands as the most substantial in the nation's history.
During his policy speech to the Assembly, President Lee emphasized that the 2026 budget would place primary focus on the artificial intelligence sector. He declared that 10.1 trillion won would be designated to propel South Korea's advancement toward joining the world's "top three AI powers," representing more than a threefold increase from the current year's AI-focused budget of 3.3 trillion won.
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The president further disclosed that investment in research and development for cutting-edge strategic areas, encompassing AI, content production, and defense manufacturing, would grow by 19.3 percent to reach an unprecedented 35.3 trillion won.
He committed to establishing a 150 trillion-won National Growth Fund spanning the following five years to foster high-technology sectors and guarantee that economic advancement benefits are distributed widely.
Regarding defense matters, Lee stated that the military budget for the coming year would increase by 8.2 percent to 66.3 trillion won. He promised to upgrade traditional weapons systems with advanced AI-powered technologies and rapidly convert the military into a "smart elite force" to enhance independent national security.
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“We will foster the defense industry as a leading manufacturing sector in the AI era by discovering startups with advanced technologies and expanding R&D investment, laying the foundation for Korea to become one of the world’s top four defense exporters,” he added.
Lee further emphasized the administration's duty to shield society's most vulnerable populations from the destabilizing impacts of accelerated technological advancement, promising focused, age-appropriate assistance programs to manage demographic transformations.
“Just as we succeeded in industrialization and informatization, we will open the door to the AI era together with the great people of Korea,” Lee said, calling for bipartisan cooperation to pass the budget within the legal deadline.
At the same time, the primary opposition People Power Party (PPP) refused to attend Lee's policy address, instead staging a demonstration at the National Assembly on Tuesday. The PPP organized an urgent assembly meeting to condemn the special prosecutors' choice to seek an arrest warrant for former floor leader Choo Kyung-ho, announcing their decision to skip the president's speech.
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PPP floor leader Song Eon-seog charged the government with "undermining the judicial system and advancing toward single-party rule to eliminate the opposition and stop the president's own legal proceedings," promising to "resist through every available method against the irresponsible Lee administration."