President Lee Presents 'Southeastern Region' Vision During Two-Day PK Visit... References YS and Pledges to Make Korea a Maritime Power

After Defense Strategy Meeting in Jinhae, President Visits Jagalchi Market in Busan
Attends Sea Day Ceremony the Following Day

Visits Key Battleground Region One Week Before Local Elections

Blue House Distances Itself From Election Link

With one week remaining before the June 3 local elections, President Lee Jaemyung visited the Busan-Gyeongnam (PK) region for two consecutive days, drawing political attention to local sentiment in PK. While the Blue House stated that the president’s itinerary focused on inspecting national strategies in the defense and maritime sectors and visiting sites related to the public livelihood, the People Power Party (PPP) criticized the visits as “government interference in the election.” As Busan-Gyeongnam has emerged as a key battleground in this local election, the ruling and opposition parties’ confrontation over the president’s regional activities is becoming a significant variable in the final days of the campaign.

President Lee Jae-myung is delivering a commemorative speech at the 31st Sea Day ceremony held on May 27 in Yeongdo-gu, Busan. 2026.5.27 Yonhap News Agency Photo by Yonhap

On May 27, President Lee attended the 31st Sea Day ceremony in Yeongdo-gu, Busan. The previous day, he presided over the first meeting of the Future Defense Strategy Committee at the Naval Submarine Command in Jinhae, Gyeongnam, then boarded the 3,000-ton class submarine Shin Chaeho to inspect its readiness, and later visited Jagalchi Market in Busan to meet with merchants and citizens. Over two days, he visited defense and defense industry sites in Gyeongnam and major public livelihood sites in Busan, culminating in participation at a national commemorative event symbolizing Busan as a maritime city.

During the Future Defense Strategy Committee meeting, President Lee discussed the construction of nuclear-powered submarines, the transfer of wartime operational control, and the transition to an advanced military force based on artificial intelligence. By raising the vision for sweeping changes in national defense in Gyeongnam, a region with a concentration of defense and shipbuilding industries, he underscored the region’s strategic importance. Afterwards, in the Shin Chaeho's combat information center, he received briefings on the current situation and operations from the captain and toured key areas such as crew living quarters and the engine control room.

President Lee emphasized to the crew of the Shin Chaeho that nuclear-powered submarines are a core asset for self-reliant national defense. He stated, “Nuclear-powered submarines are the core force for Korea’s self-reliant defense and will lead to world-class security capabilities,” adding, “The main actors who will actually operate this core force are the crew members.” He continued, “I trust you. Please protect Korea’s seas.”

President Lee Jae-myung is touring the interior of the new Chinhae submarine command ship at the Naval Submarine Command in Jinhae, Changwon, Gyeongnam on May 26, 2026. Photo by The Blue House, Yonhap News Agency

After completing his schedule in Changwon, President Lee moved to Jagalchi Market in Busan that evening. President Lee and the First Lady visited each stall, purchasing wild sea pineapples, swordtip squid, cuttlefish, tiger prawns, sea cucumbers, wild abalone, and Dokdo shrimp with Onnuri gift certificates, while also responding to citizens’ requests for handshakes and photos.

The Sea Day ceremony followed, under the slogan “From Busan to the World, From the Sea to the Future,” with over 400 attendees including officials from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, the Navy and Coast Guard, maritime industry professionals and organizations, and students from Korea Maritime & Ocean University. Before the ceremony, President Lee and the First Lady attended a welcome event for the university’s training ship, encouraging students who had completed their sailing training.

In his commemorative speech, President Lee expressed his intention to establish Busan and the southeastern region as the hub of Korea’s maritime power strategy. Specifically, he pledged to make Busan a core axis of balanced national development through the relocation of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries to Busan, fostering the shipping and port industries, nurturing maritime talents, and creating a southern maritime metropolitan area.

President Lee Jae-myung is speaking at the 1st Future Defense Strategy Committee held in Jinhae-gu, Changwon-si, Gyeongnam on May 26, 2026. Photo by Yonhap News

The Blue House has distanced itself from any direct link between these visits and the local elections. It explained that the Future Defense Strategy Committee meeting was the first session to discuss long-planned national defense transformation tasks for the new administration, and the Shin Chaeho visit was to inspect military preparedness. The Sea Day ceremony is an annual national event, and the Jagalchi Market visit was aimed at checking the traditional market economy and public livelihood, cautioning against overinterpretation. Regarding the president and first lady’s coordinated blue outfits—the color also associated with the Democratic Party—the Blue House clarified, “It was chosen as a ‘blue tone’ to mark Sea Day.” President Lee also remarked during the ceremony, “My wife and I both chose blue, symbolizing dreams and the future.”

The People Power Party is protesting. Park Sunghoon, spokesperson of the PPP’s central election committee, criticized President Lee’s visit to Busan as “blatant government interference in the election.” Park argued that President Lee mentioned strategic investment in the southeastern region at the Blue House in the morning and then headed to Jagalchi Market in Busan in the afternoon, calling it “overt election intervention.” The PPP also targeted the Blue House’s briefing on the Jagalchi Market visit, calling it “excessive praise.” Song Eonseok, PPP co-election chairperson, also posted on Facebook, “Ahead of the election, the president is touring markets across the country every day,” urging, “Stop interfering in the election immediately.”

This backlash is intertwined with the PK election landscape. While Busan-Gyeongnam is traditionally a conservative stronghold, both parties view it as a decisive battleground in this local election. If the Democratic Party achieves significant results in PK, it could expand the Lee administration’s governing momentum ahead of its first anniversary. Conversely, for the People Power Party, maintaining support in PK is crucial for consolidating the conservative base and securing political leadership after the election.

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