"Let's Build K-Silicon Valley on Suwon Military Airport Site"… Speaker Kim Jin-pyo Proposes Bill

Speaker of the National Assembly Kim Jin-pyo has proposed a bill to create an advanced industrial complex on the site of the relocated military airport in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. The plan is to develop the military airport site into a K-Silicon Valley and fulfill the long-standing wish of residents in the southern Gyeonggi region by establishing an international airport there.

On the 13th, Speaker Kim submitted two related bills to the National Assembly: the "Special Act on the Relocation of Suwon Military Airport and the Construction of an Integrated International Airport in Southern Gyeonggi" and the "Special Act on the Creation and Promotion of an Advanced Research Industrial Complex."

Speaker of the National Assembly Kim Jin-pyo is delivering a congratulatory speech at the 75th Constitution Day celebration held at the Rotunda Hall of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 17th. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers Group

One axis of these linked bills is to first relocate Suwon Military Airport to the Hwaong district, then have the airport in Hwaong function as a complex airport handling military, civilian, passenger, and cargo logistics. The other axis is to create and foster an advanced research industrial complex on the site vacated by the military airport relocation, attracting excellent domestic and international companies and talent. This so-called "K-Silicon Valley" aims to attract global companies with advanced technologies in information and communication technology (ICT), biotechnology, and other cutting-edge fields.

Regarding the establishment of a new airport in the southern Gyeonggi region, Speaker Kim explained, "The southern Gyeonggi area is a vast living economic zone with a population of 7.5 million, capable of generating sufficient air passenger demand for tourism, business, and transportation. However, residents suffer great inconvenience due to the absence of an international airport nearby." He added, "Not only for the convenience of citizens but also for strengthening corporate competitiveness in the southern Gyeonggi region, where high value-added IT companies such as Samsung, LG, and Hynix are concentrated, the establishment of an international airport is absolutely necessary for the transportation of export goods."

Regarding the installation of an advanced industrial research complex on the Suwon military airport site, he emphasized, "In southern Gyeonggi, including Suwon, Hwaseong, Yongin, and Pyeongtaek, a semiconductor cluster producing more than 50% of the world's memory semiconductors has already been formed, making it easy to secure talent and expand scale." He stressed, "We must attract about 1,000 world-class companies with advanced technologies in ICT and biotechnology to this area to respond to the competition for technological supremacy and create an opportunity to leap from G11 to G7."

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