Prime Minister Kim Min-seok on Wednesday emphasized that "regional leaders who will guide local governments for the next four years have now been newly elected," adding that "the central and local governments must cooperate with each other and produce results that the public can tangibly feel."
Kim made the remarks while presiding over an emergency economic task force meeting at the Government Complex in Seoul on the day after the June 3 local elections.
The prime minister urged ministers and vice ministers across government departments to "expand communication with local governments so that the administration's national agenda, regional pledges and key local issues can generate synergy with one another, and to review the progress of major projects."
Regarding the ceasefire negotiations between the United States and Iran, Kim expressed concern that "even if hostilities end, it is expected that substantial supply chain recovery, including the normalization of petroleum product supply and demand, will take a considerable time — in some cases, several months or more."
"Low-income households feel the impact of price increases more severely because essential expenditures such as food and energy account for a larger share of their spending," he said. "I ask the relevant ministries to do their utmost to stabilize prices, focusing on items tied to people's livelihoods."
On the recent explosion at Hanwha Aerospace's Daejeon facility and the fire at SK hynix's Cheongju plant, Kim stressed that "the relevant agencies must not show any negligence in treating the injured and supporting victims' families."
"For various high-risk processes, including the facilities where the accidents occurred, the central government and local authorities must conduct on-site inspections together and verify implementation of improvements through to the end," he added.
