#NEWS : S.Korean parliament passes next year's budget bill

SEOUL, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's ruling Grand National Party on Wednesday rammed next year's budget bill of 309.5 trillion won (274.5 billion U.S. dollars) through the plenary session of the National Assembly despite opposition lawmakers' strong resistance.

The plenary meeting, attended by 160 ruling party members and only 6 opposition lawmakers after a physical clash between the two camps, approved the budget plan 165 to one.

The approved budget is 495 billion won less than the one proposed by the government. The defense budget was increased by 142 billion won to deploy more weapons systems on the islands in waters off the west coast to strengthen combat capabilities and to improve evacuation facilities for residents there following the recent artillery skirmish between South Korea and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), while 270 billion won has been cut from the disputed development project of the nation's four main rivers.

The parliament also approved a government plan to send about 130 combat troops to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to help train special forces there. The troops will be dispatched in January next year on a two-year mission. Seoul's government said the move will help strengthen military and other ties with the Middle Eastern nation. Of the 157 lawmakers who voted, 149 approved the dispatch, two voted against it and six abstained.

Seoul's parliament was in chaos Tuesday night as the opposition camp, led by lawmakers of the main opposition Democratic Party and their aides, staged a sit-in protest at the main lobby to stop ruling Grand National Party members from unilaterally passing the bill. Scuffles reportedly left one ruling party lawmaker slightly injured.

The governing party holds a solid majority with 172 seats in the 299-member parliament.

Sphere: Related Content