Han Deok-su: "Consulting with Both Parties to Pass April Supplementary Budget"

Han Duck-soo, Acting President and Prime Minister, stated on the 30th regarding the supplementary budget (supplementary budget) for supporting wildfire damage in the Yeongnam region and responding to trade risks originating from the United States, "We will consult with both ruling and opposition parties to ensure this budget passes around April."

Acting President Han appeared on KBS's special live broadcast 'Let's Overcome Wildfire Damage Together' and said, "We have decided to push forward with the supplementary budget for this disaster."

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He said, "While actively utilizing the current budget, we will secure additional resources and ensure stable achievements in housing issues, seed problems, and agricultural machinery procurement through cooperation among local governments, the central government, and the political sphere."

Earlier, Choi Sang-mok, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, announced at the 'Emergency Economic Ministers Meeting' in the afternoon that "the government intends to promote an essential supplementary budget of 10 trillion won, including only projects that can be executed swiftly to address urgent issues."

Regarding the overhaul of disaster countermeasures, Acting President Han said, "The scale of disasters is greatly increasing due to climate and environmental changes," adding, "We need countermeasures or solutions that assume the worst-case scenarios."

He continued, "I felt that institutions like the Ministry of Environment and the Korea Forest Service, which usually prepare various measures, find it difficult to operate effectively during such large-scale disasters," and stated, "The administration of these institutions itself must be completely changed."

Acting President Han expressed gratitude to those who worked hard on firefighting efforts, saying, "Despite harsh conditions, you did your best day and night," and added, "I was deeply moved and thought the government should do better."

He also added, "The government and political parties must prepare better and make more efforts for such wonderful citizens in normal times."

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