President Lee calls for 'full energy transition' amid global uncertainty, competition for resources
Published: 08 Jan. 2026, 19:10
Updated: 08 Jan. 2026, 19:19
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- CHO JUNG-WOO
- [email protected]
![President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting of senior presidential secretaries at the Blue House in central Seoul on Jan. 8. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2026/01/08/5d51b367-d39d-4c93-87ec-7a25d75a5bdb.jpg)
President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting of senior presidential secretaries at the Blue House in central Seoul on Jan. 8. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]
President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday called for Korea to diligently prepare for a “full energy transition,” noting that international chaos related to energy issues is becoming more evident.
Speaking at the first meeting of senior presidential secretaries of the year at the Blue House in central Seoul, Lee said the new year should mark “the starting point for a national leap forward through a major transformation in growth,” pledging to unite the public “beyond ideology and political camps.”
The meeting came a day after Lee returned from a four-day, two-city state visit to China on Wednesday, his first trip to the Northeast Asian country since taking office.
“An energy transition must also be prepared for carefully,” the president said in his opening remarks, noting that the international community is grappling with uncertainty over energy supplies.
“How we prepare for future energy and how we respond to that transition will determine not only our growth, but potentially the destiny of this country."
His comments were widely interpreted as reflecting heightened global competition over energy resources, including nuclear power and renewable energy, amid the broader restructuring of international supply chains.
The remarks also come as some observers have suggested that the recent U.S. military strike on Venezuela is rooted in a competition for energy hegemony, including oil.
Asked whether the government was considering the construction of a new nuclear power plant in light of the president’s remarks, presidential spokesperson Kim Nam-joon said it is “premature to discuss" specific projects, but added that this was nonetheless the moment for Korea to “carefully review its energy policies and decide how it will move forward.”
Beyond energy, the president emphasized inclusive growth, calling for renewed policy focus on regions and sectors that have long been marginalized.
He pledged to concentrate government resources so that “local areas, small- and medium-sized enterprises, startups and young people can emerge as new pillars of growth.”
He urged ministries and senior aides to evaluate policies not by abstract indicators but by their tangible effects on daily life. “Please closely review policies across the board,” he said, “using as your standard how people’s lives have actually changed.”
The president also highlighted AI as a strategic priority, describing what he called an “AI great transformation” as no longer a matter for individual companies alone, but one that now “determines the future of the nation.”
He called for faster efforts to secure talent, expand infrastructure and strengthen global cooperation so that AI can serve as the foundation for a qualitative transformation across society.
Turning to the broader economy, Lee noted that major indicators, including the Kospi stock index, had continued to show improvement into the new year. But he cautioned that such gains must translate into everyday benefits.
“The seeds of change that began to appear in the second half of last year must be connected to concrete outcomes that people can actually feel in their lives,” he said.
“The core foundation of Korea’s next great leap forward is growth for everyone,” Lee added.
“What matters is not growth expressed in grand numbers that appear only in the news, but changes and progress that are felt in the lives of all 50 million people.”
BY CHO JUNG-WOO [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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