Prime Minister Han Duck-soo: "R&D Budget for Entrenched Interests and Inertia Must Be Improved"

Regular Press Conference on the 18th

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo stated that the next year's research and development (R&D) budget, which has sparked controversy over cuts, "should be improved if it was organized based on vested interests and inertia." This reiterated the government's position that it has cut the budget that was allocated in a 'dividing and sharing' manner, amid backlash from the scientific community following the budget announcement.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo is attending a regular press briefing at the Government Complex Sejong on the 18th and answering questions. Photo by Song Seung-seop

On the 18th, at a press conference held at the Sejong Government Complex, Prime Minister Han responded to criticism that "there is ongoing criticism about the reduction of the R&D budget" by emphasizing, "If there is an R&D budget organized based on vested interests and inertia, it should be improved in a better direction."

He continued, "Just because it is a basic field does not mean the state has to spend all the taxes," explaining, "It is important that the necessary basic fields receive funding and that it is used well." He added, "There are also those who say that the current R&D budget allocation system needs continuous improvement."

He also stated, "The science and technology budget has rapidly increased over the past few years," and argued, "There are over 1,400 fields and tens of thousands of projects have increased, but whether they were used well is something that needs ongoing review."

However, he pledged to minimize cuts to the wages of young researchers. Prime Minister Han mentioned, "There are difficulties in research involving existing researchers, especially graduate students," and said, "We have taken measures, regardless of the budget, to minimize the impact on wages and similar aspects in projects conducted by young researchers."

Regarding the plan to increase medical school quotas by 1,000 students, he said, "A significant portion of the public supports the idea that medical personnel should increase," and added, "We are thinking about how to engage in dialogue with stakeholders and gain solid consensus from the public." He dismissed specifics on the increase, saying, "Nothing has been decided."

Meanwhile, on the background of Fitch maintaining South Korea's credit rating at AA-, he said, "Ultimately, it is due to external soundness, such as the international balance of payments and current account," and evaluated, "Although the export sector may have faced considerable difficulties in the first half of the year, there will be dynamism in the second half."

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