President Lee Jae Myung has ordered the government to revisit the timetable for relocating Gwangju's military airport, saying the current plan to complete the temporary relocation by mid-2028 is too slow.
The instruction came during the third public-private review meeting on major national projects, where the Defense Ministry briefed the president on the relocation plan. According to the presidential office, Lee told officials to examine how the schedule could be moved forward as much as possible.
Pressure shifts to the timetable
His order went beyond a request for faster administration. Lee said unusually urgent circumstances may require unusually direct measures, including changes to laws, regulations or guidelines if those are blocking progress. That puts pressure on the ministries involved to identify which parts of the current timetable are technical necessities and which are procedural delays that can be shortened.
The airport issue was discussed alongside a broader push to speed large development projects while improving local living conditions. Lee said the success of major projects should be judged by whether they improve people's lives, and called for housing, education, culture and medical infrastructure to advance together with industrial investment.
The practical decision now sits with the ministries responsible for the relocation. They must turn the president's instruction into a revised schedule, financing plan and administrative sequence, while determining whether any legal changes are required.
For Gwangju and surrounding communities, the key question is whether the government can materially shorten the current mid-2028 target rather than simply repackage the same timetable. The presidential office has made speed an explicit test of the project's execution, but it has not yet announced a replacement completion date.