South Korea's Urgent Call for Economic Reinforcement Amid Energy Crisis

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has called for swift parliamentary approval of a 26.2 trillion won supplementary budget. The move aims to address economic challenges amid an energy security threat posed by the Middle East crisis. The budget is expected to pass by April 10.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday pressed parliament to swiftly approve a 26.2 trillion won ($17.3 billion) supplementary budget, highlighting its necessity to safeguard the economy from an unprecedented energy security threat arising from the Middle East crisis.

In a televised speech, President Lee emphasized that, even with an immediate halt to the conflict, rebuilding the energy infrastructure in the Middle East would take significant time, delaying normalization of resource supply. Therefore, he urged prompt action.

Parliament is expected to endorse the extra budget by April 10, allowing the government to implement it urgently once approved to stabilize the economic situation. ($1 = 1,521.6000 won)

(With inputs from agencies.)