▲ An Air Force 1st Fighter Wing jet trainer sits on the runway at Gwangju air base, 270 kilometers southwest of Seoul, on Aug. 10, 2026. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, Aug. 28 (Yonhap) -- A government selection committee finalized Friday its designation of a southwestern county as the site for a military air base relocation from the neighboring city of Gwangju, a decision that clears the way for an expedited build-out of a major semiconductor cluster.

The committee, led by the defense ministry, finalized an earlier decision designating Muan County as the new site for the air base, home to the 1st Fighter Wing, following a meeting joined by municipal government officials, the ministry said in a release.

"The final designation of Muan County as the relocation site puts the Gwangju base relocation project into full motion, laying the groundwork for a swift process in cooperation with relevant agencies," the ministry said.

The latest decision clears the way for the government to accelerate its push to build a vast semiconductor and artificial intelligence (AI) cluster in Gwangju and surrounding regions, an 800 trillion-won (US$582.9 billion) project joined by Samsung Electronics Co. and SK hynix Inc.

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