'Daegu Gyeongbuk Integrated New Airport' Sudden Agreement ... Gunwi-gun Accepts Bold Mediation Proposal

County Governor Kim Young-man Holds Official Press Conference Following 'Signatures from Local National Assembly and City Council Members' on Mediation Proposal
Ministry of National Defense Issues 'Sudden Agreement' Statement Then Temporarily Holds Off

Kim Young-man, Gunwi County Governor, is seen holding hands and walking with Kwon Young-jin, Mayor of Daegu (left), and Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk Province, after a press conference on the evening of the 30th.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Dong-wook] On the 30th, one day before the deadline for the application to host the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Integrated New Airport joint relocation site (Bian-myeon, Uiseong-gun and Sobo-myeon, Gunwi-gun), Gunwi-gun, which had maintained a stance against joint applications, dramatically reached an agreement by accepting the groundbreaking mediation proposal from Gyeongbuk Province and Daegu City.

However, at around 7:25 p.m. that day, the Ministry of National Defense sent a statement to the press corps announcing the "sudden agreement on the application for the joint candidate site," but about 20 minutes later, it requested to withhold official disclosure, stating, "Additional discussions are currently underway between local governments," revealing the difficult negotiation situation until the very end.

At 6 p.m. that day, Kim Young-man, the head of Gunwi-gun, held a joint press conference at the Gunwi-gun Office with Kwon Young-jin, Mayor of Daegu, and Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk Province, publicly expressing his intention to apply for the joint candidate site, saying, "We have made a magnanimous decision for the development of Daegu-Gyeongbuk and Gunwi." Gunwi-gun plans to submit the application to the Ministry of National Defense on the 31st.

This change in Kim's position was made suddenly after receiving signatures from most Daegu-Gyeongbuk National Assembly members and city/provincial council members on the mediation proposal (joint agreement) announced the previous day by Daegu City and Gyeongbuk Province.

Earlier, regarding the joint candidate site application, Kim met with Mayor Kwon and Governor Lee in the morning and requested signatures not only from the mayor, governor, city/provincial council chairs, and two local National Assembly members who signed the joint agreement but also from all Daegu-Gyeongbuk National Assembly members and city/provincial council members. In response, Mayor Kwon and Governor Lee delivered the signatures to Kim around 6 p.m. that day as requested. Although signatures from two Daegu city council members and two Gyeongbuk provincial council members were missing, Kim accepted it.

The agreement includes placing the civilian airport terminal, airport access road, and the "military off-base housing" in Gunwi-gun, and developing 3.3 million square meters each of airport new town, including the hinterland industrial complex, in Gunwi-gun and Uiseong-gun until the completion of the airport relocation project. Additionally, it specifies ▲ the establishment of the Daegu-Gyeongbuk civil servant training facility in Gunwi-gun ▲ construction of a passage through Gunwi-gun until the airport relocation project is completed ▲ and the incorporation of Gunwi-gun into Daegu City.

Regarding Kim's decision, the Gunwi-gun Council expressed a "welcoming" response. Shim Chil, chairman of the Gunwi-gun Council, emphasized, "Since Gunwi stands to gain sufficient benefits from hosting the joint candidate site, there is no reason to oppose it," and added, "Since the entire local political community guarantees it, I believe the incentives will definitely be honored."

The Gunwi-gun Integrated New Airport Promotion Committee, which had insisted on the Ubo single candidate site, also expressed a stance of "not opposing if there are clear principles and benefits," but it is reported that some members inside the committee strongly oppose it. The Ministry of National Defense's delay in officially announcing the "agreement on the application" is presumed to be related to this.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of National Defense's Daegu Military Airport Relocation Site Selection Committee decided on the 3rd that the single candidate site (Ubo-myeon, Gunwi-gun) was unsuitable and postponed the suitability judgment for the joint candidate site (Sobo-myeon, Gunwi-gun and Bian-myeon, Uiseong-gun) until the 31st.

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