South Korea Begins Cabinet Hearings Amid Clashes; Labor, AI, Central Asia Talks Advance
South Korea's National Assembly began confirmation hearings for three Cabinet nominees on Sept. 15, 2026, amid clashes over the justice minister nominee. The government also proposed labor talks on a semiconductor-cluster bill, prepared for a Korea-Central Asia summit, and stressed power supply for AI megaprojects.
Kim apologized at the hearing for causing public concern over allegations surrounding himself and said he would faithfully answer each lawmaker's questions and explain in detail any claims inconsistent with the facts. The hearing got off to a rocky start even before lawmakers began questioning Kim, as rival parties exchanged barbs over allegations involving a social cooperative for people with developmental disabilities where Kim's wife works.
Lawmakers of the main opposition People Power Party questioned whether Kim was fit to serve as justice minister. They also took issue with his involvement in a group of ruling party lawmakers demanding that the criminal indictments facing President Lee Jae Myung be dropped. The ruling Democratic Party accused independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon of leaking investigative material in a politically motivated attack and questioned how he obtained information known to a limited number of people within the prosecution. Han has released a series of phone conversation transcripts and recordings between the nominee and a broker, claiming Kim had exercised undue influence on the food and drug safety ministry.
The National Assembly also began confirmation hearings for Finance Minister nominee Lee Hyoung-il and Lee So-young, nominee for minister for small and medium-sized enterprises. Both face separate controversies over real estate issues. Cabinet nominees are subject to parliamentary confirmation hearings, but their appointments do not require parliamentary approval.
Separately, Labor Minister Kim Young-hoon proposed a one-point social dialogue to discuss contentious issues surrounding an envisioned special bill that would significantly relax labor regulations, including the 52-hour workweek limit, in mega-scale semiconductor clusters. The government aims to introduce the so-called mega cluster bill by the end of this month. It may include a plan to exempt managers and researchers in the top 3 percent of income earners from the 52-hour workweek limit, as well as overtime, night and holiday work allowances. The 52-hour workweek law was introduced in 2018 to prevent overwork.
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun called for deeper cooperation with Central Asia, highlighting the potential to build a stronger partnership in strategic resources, supply chains, artificial intelligence and other future-oriented fields. Cho made the call in a contribution to Yonhap News Agency ahead of the first Korea-Central Asia summit set for Wednesday, where leaders from South Korea and the five Central Asian countries -- Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan -- will discuss ways to enhance partnership for shared prosperity.
Prime Minister Han Seong-sook said the success of the government's three megaprojects hinges upon a timely electricity supply and a robust power transmission grid. Han made the remark at the start of a Cabinet meeting, referring to the initiative calling for a national transformation driven by semiconductors, physical artificial intelligence and AI data centers, and AI-driven administrative innovation, which require a massive amount of power.