Why Minister Kim Hyun-mi Visited the Ministry of National Defense Building

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Hyun-mi is attending the comprehensive real estate policy party-government meeting held at the National Assembly on the 15th. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Yang Nak-gyu] It has been confirmed that Kim Hyun-mi, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, visited the Ministry of National Defense building in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, and met with Minister Jeong Kyeong-du. The two ministers are believed to have discussed the issue of lifting the Greenbelt to expand housing supply in Seoul.

On the 15th, a Ministry of National Defense official said, "The two ministers from the respective ministries had a brief meeting in the afternoon, but we cannot disclose what was discussed."

The Democratic Party of Korea and the government held a closed-door government-party meeting on real estate at the National Assembly on the same day as part of an intergovernmental task force (TF). It appears that Minister Kim met with Minister Jeong Kyeong-du after this meeting. It is expected that the two ministers exchanged opinions on ways to utilize military idle land and other related matters during this meeting.

The Ministry of Economy and Finance held a real estate subcommittee meeting of the State Property Policy Deliberation Committee on the 30th of last month and decided to utilize some military facilities in Wirye, Namtaeryeong in Seoul, and the Capital Defense Command in Dongjak-gu as approximately 1,300 public housing units for youth and newlyweds.

The three projects approved by the Ministry of Economy and Finance involve military facilities with low utilization, including the Wirye military site (Changgok-dong, Seongnam-si), Namtaeryeong military housing (Namhyun-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul), and the Capital Defense Command (main building) in Dongjak-gu. A total project cost of 662.2 billion KRW will be invested to supply 1,187 military housing units and 1,314 units of newlywed hope town (sale type) and happy housing (rental type).

In terms of scale, the Wirye military site is the largest. By March 2024, it will be transformed into 630 military housing units and 659 newlywed hope town units. The Namtaeryeong military housing will supply 370 military housing units, 300 newlywed hope town units, and 100 happy housing units by June 2025. The Capital Defense Command site in Dongjak-gu will have 187 military housing units, 170 newlywed hope town units, and 85 happy housing units by February 2024.

Meanwhile, there are speculations that the Ministry of National Defense may additionally lift restrictions on military protection zones following the Greenbelt.

In December 2018, the Ministry of National Defense officially lifted 336.99 million square meters of military facility protection zones, equivalent to 116 times the area of Yeouido. This was the second time since 1994, when 1.718 billion square meters were lifted. Once a military protection zone is lifted, restrictions on building extensions, reconstructions, or land development that required consultation with the military are removed. Additionally, those who own land or buildings in the area can freely exercise their property rights.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.