South Korea has tentatively allocated 520 billion won (US$393 million) in the state budget to be used in various support programs for Ukraine, including reconstruction-related projects, next year, according to the government's budget proposal released Tuesday.
Seoul's funds earmarked for Ukraine-related projects for 2024 represents an over eightfold increase from the related 62.9 billion won budget for this year. Of those, 260 billion won will be used to provide humanitarian assistance to the country in its war with Russia.
For the first time, South Korea has drawn up a dedicated budget related to reconstruction projects in Ukraine, set at 130 billion won. Also, 130 billion won will be forwarded to international agencies to be used to provide help to Ukraine.
The move came after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv last month and agreed to provide the country with a package of security, humanitarian and reconstruction assistance under the name "Ukraine Peace and Solidarity Initiative."
Further, the country's budget for overseas development assistance (ODA) has been set at 6.5 trillion won for next year, up 2 trillion won from this year and marking Seoul's biggest annual ODA budget to date.
South Korea has also allocated 1.95 trillion won for diplomacy projects in the Indo-Pacific and Africa, marking an approximately 600 billion-won increase from 2023.
The government has also requested 700 billion won in funds for overseas humanitarian assistance programs related to natural disasters, regional conflicts and food crises.
Source: Yonhap News Agency