BUSAN — Independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon, who represents Busan's Buk District, said he will work with Busan Mayor Jeon Jae-soo on the city's development despite their political differences. Han said he would use his position in the National Assembly to advance large-scale projects centered on his constituency of Gupo, Deokcheon and Mandeok, including a rail overhaul of the Gyeongbu Line and traffic improvements. The Busan city government and Han's office held their first official budget policy meeting on the 14th to discuss key local issues and ways to secure state funding, raising the prospect of cooperation built around the city's agenda.
"The mayor and I differ on many political questions, but I believe no one is more committed than we are to properly developing Gupo, Deokcheon and Mandeok," Han said at a press conference at the Busan Metropolitan Council briefing room on the 14th. "I will work with Busan politicians who share that goal."
The first item Han put forward was the rail overhaul of the Gyeongbu Line. He said he had discussed ways to secure the necessary budget with the city government. "We talked about trying to get Gupo and the Gaya rail depot included in the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's project," he said. "I will do my part in the National Assembly, and the city will do its part," he added, signaling he would push actively during the central government's project selection and the state funding process.
Han also stressed that the project could reshape Gupo's urban structure. "Gupo is a very old area, and the railway divides the neighborhood," he said. "The railway running through Gupo was once a driving force for growth, but now it has become one of the obstacles to it." He added: "The mayor has pledged this many times before without delivering. Now that I am in the National Assembly and he is mayor, I told him let's get it done properly this time."
Easing traffic congestion around Mandeok was another area of cooperation he cited. Han said he was already in talks with the city on improvement plans, proposing a division of labor in which he secures the necessary budget in the National Assembly and the city presses ahead with the project using those funds.
Han also drew attention by stressing the need for large-scale investment in western Busan. "Busan is not a city with a growing population, so if you look only at budget cost-effectiveness, it is hard to direct money to Gupo, Deokcheon and Mandeok," he said. "If that happens, things can only get worse than they are now." He added: "The gap between eastern and western Busan keeps widening, and if economic feasibility is the only criterion, money will continue to flow to the east."
He was also wary of a contest over political credit. "I have no intention of monopolizing the credit here," Han said. "I told him Jeon Jae-soo will be the lead and I will play the supporting role." His point was that results for the region matter more than political advantage.
The message of cooperation coincided with the budget policy meeting held that morning between the city government and Han's office. At City Hall, the city held its first official budget policy meeting with Han and requested support on nine major issues, including a second round of relocating public institutions to the provinces, the timely opening of Gadeokdo New Airport, converting Chimrye Hospital into a public hospital, and building a safe drinking water supply system.
Taking advantage of Han's seat on the National Assembly's Special Committee on Budget and Accounts, the two sides also discussed 17 core projects that require state funding next year. They include establishing a national quantum innovation center, a physical AI-based total care AX platform linked to regional caregiving, a blockchain creative district, a maritime and port AX demonstration center, a next-generation power semiconductor production platform, an AI-based biomaterials process innovation convergence support center, and an AI transformation of the Eco Delta Smart City national pilot city.
The city was represented at the meeting by Vice Mayor for Future Innovation Oh Seok-geun, the mayor's special adviser for political affairs and the head of the planning and coordination office, while Han attended with his aides. The meeting is seen as part of the city's effort to broaden channels of cooperation with local politicians and draw support across party lines in next year's competition for state funding.
On national politics, however, Han kept up his attacks on the Lee Jae-myung administration. At the press conference, he sharply criticized allegations surrounding Kim Seung-won, the nominee for justice minister, and urged the People Power Party to take a tougher line against the administration, saying, "What conservatives need is not fighting itself but winning." He declined to comment in detail on his own political plans, including a possible return to the party.
