Muan's Mangwoon-myeon selected as candidate site for Gwangju military airport relocation

The long-stalled relocation of Gwangju Military Airport has entered a full-scale implementation phase after more than 13 years of delays.

The Ministry of National Defense said Friday it held the second meeting of the Gwangju Military Airport Relocation Site Selection Committee at the ministry's main conference room and designated the Mangwoon-myeon area of Muan-gun, South Jeolla Province, as the candidate relocation site.

Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back, who chairs the committee, called the decision "a historic step forward not only in resolving a long-standing regional issue that has persisted for decades, but also in achieving balanced regional development," and pledged to carry out the remaining relocation procedures "transparently, together with the residents of Muan-gun."

Discussions on relocating the airport had made little headway since the enactment of the Special Act on Military Airport Relocation and Support in 2013. The process gained momentum last December when a six-party consultative body — comprising the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, South Jeolla Province, Gwangju Metropolitan City and Muan-gun — reached a landmark agreement on the integrated relocation of both the military and civilian airports.

Building on that agreement, the Defense Ministry officially designated the Mangwoon-myeon area as a preliminary candidate site on April 2. The first meeting of the site selection committee was then held on June 17, with Ahn presiding, and adopted the criteria and procedures for selecting the final candidate site.

Friday's second committee meeting formally resolved to designate Mangwoon-myeon as the final candidate site in accordance with those criteria and procedures.

The ministry said the selection criteria rest on two pillars: "institutional feasibility" and "social consensus."

A review of Air Force operational requirements and the permits and approvals required under relevant laws found no items deemed impermissible at the current stage.

Social consensus, however, hinged on whether the head of the relevant local government — the Muan-gun county chief — would give approval.

The ministry said the social consensus requirement was met through the county chief's "conditional approval."

With Muan-gun designated as the candidate site, the ministry said the relocation project has now entered full-scale implementation. Next steps include drawing up a support plan for areas surrounding the relocation site and holding a resident referendum. The ministry said it plans to swiftly carry out follow-up procedures under relevant laws, including selecting the final relocation site based on the referendum results.

Alongside those procedures, the government said it will flesh out a support package of 1 trillion won ($724 million) plus additional measures for regional development and resident welfare in Muan-gun. The six-party consultative body had earlier agreed to raise a total of 1 trillion won through development proceeds from the airport relocation, government policy support and subsidies, and Gwangju's own funding.

The government said it will provide the 1 trillion won agreed upon by the consultative body and prepare additional national-level support measures on top of that.

To that end, a relocation project support committee will be established and operated under the chairmanship of the head of the Office for Government Policy Coordination.

The support committee will identify detailed assistance measures centered on programs that Muan-gun residents can tangibly benefit from — including improvements to living conditions, the creation of local industrial and employment foundations, and enhancements to the residential environment. It will also monitor and manage support from relevant agencies to ensure implementation proceeds without disruption.

The government said it will pursue the support programs responsibly under the principle that "special sacrifice must be met with special support," ensuring the initiatives produce real results rather than remaining at the level of declarations.

Ahn said the designation marks "a historic step forward not only in resolving a long-standing regional issue that has persisted for decades, but also in achieving balanced regional development," and pledged to proceed with the remaining relocation procedures "transparently, together with the residents of Muan-gun."

Meanwhile, the vacated Gwangju Military Airport site is being eyed for a Honam-region semiconductor cluster, and the confirmation of the candidate relocation site is expected to accelerate the restructuring of the region's industrial base.