President Lee Jae-myung (이재명) said on Sunday he would make 2026 the year a bold dream begins for an "irreplaceable Korea" that no country in the world can replace.

Lee made the remarks in a commemorative address as he held a news conference at the Cheong Wa Dae State Guest House to mark the first anniversary of his inauguration. He said he would open a new era of the "K initiative" by using South Korea's experience, capabilities, values and appeal, and the public energy to overcome national crises, as a stepping stone.

Lee said the past year saw the country weather three crises: a democracy crisis triggered by insurrection and martial law, a trade and security crisis driven by upheaval in the international order, and a cost-of-living crisis brought on by the Middle East war. He said it was again confirmed that the great resilience of the Korean people, united in the face of unrelenting crises, makes it possible to overcome any difficulty.

He said the world is now watching how South Korea will address issues ranging from a major industrial transformation driven by artificial intelligence and the climate crisis to low birth rates, regional extinction, polarization and deepening inequality. Lee said South Korea's challenges would become a new global standard if it charts the path first.

He said he would make a vigorous leap from being a country the world watches to a country the world needs, and presented four key national policy goals.

As the first goal, Lee said he would move toward becoming a super-gap industrial power where all citizens and the entire territory broadly share opportunities and benefits of growth. He said South Korea would continuously discover and foster "global super-gap growth engines" that can serve as the country's next-generation growth drivers in sectors beyond semiconductors.

He said most importantly, the fruits of growth must not remain with specific companies, regions or sectors. He said achievements and opportunities built by the entire community must flow to small and venture businesses and spread evenly across the country and all fields, leading to changes that all citizens can feel in their lives.

In that context, Lee promised he would soon unveil to the public a large-scale investment project that will deliver a "major transformation in growth strategy".

He also said he would carefully ensure the public-backed National Growth Fund can fulfill its role of "growth for everyone" and would also prepare ways to use surplus tax revenue from semiconductors most effectively.

As the second goal, Lee said he would move toward becoming a global diplomacy and security power that protects peace and pride for all citizens.

Lee said he would do his best to ensure valuable diplomacy and security achievements made over the past year yield concrete results, including revising the U.S.-South Korea nuclear energy agreement, introducing nuclear-powered submarines and pushing for an early recovery of wartime operational control. He said he would steadily pursue a path toward peace and stability on the Korean peninsula, and coexistence and shared prosperity, under the principle that peace is growth and peace is livelihoods.

He added that based on a strong U.S.-South Korea alliance, robust self-reliant defense and practical diplomacy focused on national interests, he would strengthen the country's stature and role as a "globally responsible strong nation".

As the third goal, he cited building a "normal society" where norms and rules agreed by all citizens are upheld.

Lee said no innovation or challenge can be expected in a country where breaking rules brings gains and where people succeed through unfair practices and expedients. He said he would firmly correct unfair practices, privileges and unfairness that harm people's lives, even if they seem minor, and would push more strongly to normalize "abnormalities" across society.

He pledged to strictly punish livelihood crimes that disrupt market order, such as stock price manipulation and real estate crimes, and to steadily carry out structural reform tasks to dismantle privileges.

Finally, Lee said that as a government that saves citizens' lives, he would devote all efforts to protecting the lives of all citizens and a humane life. He said there is no more important duty of the state than protecting citizens' lives, and he would implement proactive and meticulous administration to protect people with a thick social safety "mattress" without gaps.

Lee said the only standard in state affairs is the lives of the people. He said he would be reborn as an "innovative and practical government" that is most responsive to change to protect people's lives in an era of great upheaval. He pledged to break with old practices and make the government itself a model of innovation, and to become a government without silos that debates intensely but executes swiftly.

He also said he would continue evolving into a government that does not discriminate among policies if they help people's lives. He said he would never compromise when it comes to people's lives and would not be complacent even for a moment when it comes to the country's future. He stressed he would run with all his might, treating each day given to him as if it were the last day of his term, so the next 4 years will be more anticipated than the past year.

[Yonhap News Agency]