President Lee: "Issuing Over 100 Trillion Won in Government Bonds Is Inevitable for a Turning Point"

President Lee Jae-myung is speaking at the 100-day inauguration press conference titled "100 Days for Recovery, Growth for the Future," held at the Blue House State Guesthouse on the 11th. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

On September 11, President Lee Jaemyung described the national debt as an "inevitable measure to create a turning point."

At a press conference marking his 100th day in office, held at the Blue House State Guesthouse that day, President Lee made these remarks in response to a question about whether issuing over 100 trillion won in government bonds could undermine the country's fiscal soundness.

President Lee emphasized, "We are not spending 100 trillion won to make it disappear; we will mainly invest in productive sectors," expressing confidence that "this will serve as a seed, resulting in an increase in national income and total production several times greater than the initial investment."

He also stated, "The absolute amount of government bonds is not particularly important," and explained, "If we issue government bonds, the debt-to-GDP ratio will be just over 50%, whereas in many other countries, it is typically over 100%."

He stressed, "Now is the time to sow seeds in the field. If we do not have seeds, we should even borrow money to buy them and sow them. I believe it would be better to reap a much larger harvest in the fall and repay the debt with ease."