President Lee Jae-myung on the 2nd urged voluntary public efforts to overcome the crisis through a supplementary budget address, noting that the Middle East war is expected to be prolonged. He particularly stressed, "We can exit the tunnel of crisis safely and swiftly when we save even a single drop of oil and do not waste even one plastic bag," adding that "the united strength of the people is needed." During the approximately 16-minute address, President Lee mentioned "crisis" 28 times and "economy" 18 times, appealing for the urgency of passing the supplementary budget.
In his address on the "2026 supplementary budget" at the National Assembly, President Lee emphasized his resolve "not to miss the golden time for economic recovery." He assessed that while the economy had an opportunity to soar thanks to the KOSPI index surpassing 5,000 and strong performances by companies in semiconductors and shipbuilding, the Middle East war has put the country "in an unexpected compound crisis." He also stated that the government is "preemptively responding by thoroughly examining the impact on the overall economy and people's daily lives, with the worst-case scenario in mind."
President Lee outlined the total 26.2 trillion won ($19.1 billion) supplementary budget in four main categories: ▲a three-part package for high oil price burden relief at 10 trillion won, ▲livelihood stabilization at 2.8 trillion won, ▲supply chain stability at 2.6 trillion won, and ▲local investment funding at 9.5 trillion won. Regarding the "high oil price relief payments" that drew the most attention, President Lee said, "We will provide differentiated support of 100,000 to 200,000 won to approximately 36 million people in the bottom 70% income bracket," adding that "the payments will be distributed as local currency to contribute to economic stimulation."
For livelihood stabilization, he proposed "doubling the number of 'Geunyangdeurim Centers,' which provide free basic food and daily necessities, so that people do not resort to extreme choices or fall into crime because they have nothing to eat." On securing core resources, he pledged, "We will invest 700 billion won to secure a stable supply base for oil and other resources," and promised to "build a solid supply chain by expanding naphtha procurement — the 'rice' of the petrochemical industry — and oil stockpile support."
President Lee mentioned "crisis" 28 times during the address. This is interpreted as highlighting how the domestic economic uncertainty caused by the Middle East war is directly impacting vulnerable groups. He also mentioned "economy" 18 times, "people" 17 times, and "energy" 9 times, appealing for public participation in energy conservation to overcome the Middle East-driven energy crisis.
Prior to the speech, President Lee held preliminary discussions with National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik and the leadership of both ruling and opposition parties at the Speaker's office. There, he said, "We are taking considerable damage in terms of resource procurement due to instability in the international situation," and requested, "While it may be difficult to cooperate on every issue, please join forces within the scope of consensus formed under the shared goal of the nation's future and people's livelihoods." He also urged partial progress on constitutional amendment, saying, "I believe there is sufficient room for agreement on reflecting the spirit of the May 18 Democratization Movement in the constitutional preamble and on tightening the requirements for martial law declarations."
