Province steps up lobbying efforts as Defense Ministry's planned move to Sejong opens new possibilities; relocation to Nonsan or Gyeryong seen as key to building a self-contained defense ecosystem
South Chungcheong Province announced Tuesday it would mount an all-out effort to attract the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses to Nonsan and Gyeryong, aiming to build a self-contained defense ecosystem in the region.
KIDA, currently based in Seoul, is a government-funded think tank that has long served as a leading research institution shaping national defense policy.
The province has kept KIDA on its list of target defense agencies to attract and has been actively pursuing its relocation.
KIDA, however, has maintained its preference for a Greater Seoul location, citing the need for geographic proximity to the Defense Ministry.
Provincial officials believe Nonsan and Gyeryong offer unmatched conditions for KIDA's new home.
Gyeryong hosts Gyeryongdae, the combined headquarters of the Army, Navy and Air Force, while Nonsan is home to a concentration of major defense-related institutions, including the Korea National Defense University, the Army Training Center and the Army Aviation School. A national defense industrial complex in South Chungcheong Province is also set to open in Nonsan in 2029.
Should KIDA relocate to Nonsan or Gyeryong, officials expect the move to complete a full defense ecosystem in the region — one spanning policy research, education, policy demand, and verification and production.
To attract KIDA and other defense agencies, the province has pursued a series of measures: enacting relevant ordinances, operating a special committee, commissioning research studies and holding policy forums.
Going forward, the province plans to closely monitor developments at the central government, the National Assembly and defense agencies, respond in a timely manner, continue lobbying the government and strengthen coordination with Nonsan and Gyeryong.
"The Defense Ministry's planned relocation to Sejong provides an opportunity to reconsider KIDA's location from a fresh perspective," a provincial official said. "We will sharpen our case for bringing KIDA here by leveraging the differentiated strengths of Nonsan and Gyeryong's defense infrastructure and industrial base, and we will work to turn that into a tangible outcome."
Meanwhile, the Defense Ministry was included in the government's central administrative agency relocation plan announced Oct. 13, making KIDA's own move effectively inevitable. The Seoul site of KIDA's current building has also been earmarked in a government housing supply plan released in January.
kwonhl@heraldcorp.com
