ISTANBUL
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday called the situation created by conflict in the Middle East "wartime-level," urging lawmakers to pass an extra budget of $17.1 billion swiftly.
Addressing parliament, Lee described the situation as an "unexpected, multifaceted" crisis for South Korea as the US-Israeli war with Iran continued in its fifth week, Yonhap News reported.
"Extraordinary measures are needed in times of emergency," Lee said. "The government recognizes the current situation as a wartime-level crisis for the people's economy and is mobilizing all available resources to overcome it."
The lawmakers are expected to pass the budget bill by April 10.
South Korea has issued a second-level national energy security alert due to disruptions in its oil supplies.
Lee, separately, also directed officials to prepare traffic control measures as part of energy-saving steps.
Seoul's imports of crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz have been suspended for more than 10 days since the waterway’s effective closure on March 1.
The last tanker from the strait arrived in South Korea on March 20.
In 2024, South Korea sourced about 55% of its energy products from the Middle East, worth roughly $144 billion.
Tensions in the Middle East have escalated since Israel and the US launched a joint offensive against Iran on Feb. 28, resulting in more than 1,340 deaths, including then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Iran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and Gulf countries hosting US military assets, causing casualties and infrastructure damage while disrupting global markets and aviation.
At least 13 US servicemen have been killed during the ongoing armed conflict, with dozens of others wounded.