Seoul: The ruling and opposition parties in South Korea are engaged in a tense standoff over the reform of the national pension system, focusing initially on the issues of pension contribution and income replacement rates. Rep. Kwon Young-se, serving as the interim leader of the ruling People Power Party, recently urged for a swift determination of these rates. His counterpart, Rep. Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, had previously directed his party to conclude legislative work on these rates within the month. According to Yonhap News Agency, hopes for renewed parliamentary discussions on the long-stalled pension reform were initially sparked by Kwon's remarks. However, these expectations were soon dashed as the parties found themselves at odds over leadership in the discussions. The People Power Party is advocating for the establishment of a special pension committee, while the Democratic Party insists that the existing Health and Welfare Committee should manage the iss ue. Efforts to reform the national pension have been stalled after preliminary agreements suggested raising the contribution rate from 9 percent to 13 percent, and the income replacement rate from 42 percent to either 43 or 44 percent. Typically, employees contribute a portion of their wages to the national pension fund, with employers covering half of these contributions. Retired workers then receive a percentage of their preretirement income, known as the "income replacement rate," as their pension. In a previous National Assembly session, both parties nearly finalized agreements on these rates. However, negotiations faltered when the ruling party insisted on incorporating structural reform issues into the discussions. While both parties agree on raising the contribution rate to 13 percent, they differ on the income replacement rate, with the ruling party favoring minimal increases and the opposition party advocating for a higher rate. This disagreement has narrowed down to a choice between 43 percent and 44 percent. Should an agreement be reached, this would mark the first partial reform of the national pension system in 27 years, since 1998. The number of people insured by the National Pension Service (NPS) is steadily decreasing. As per the NPS, the number of individuals covered, including pensioners and those insured individually and voluntarily, reached 21.81 million by late October last year, a decline of more than 570,000 from late 2023. The number of employees insured out of obligation also decreased by about 80,000 to 14.73 million over the same 10-month period, marking the first time this figure has fallen. The National Pension Research Institute had predicted this decline for the current year, but it occurred a year earlier than expected. Meanwhile, national pension recipients increased by over 413,000, reaching 7.23 million by late October. If this trend persists, it is predicted that the total amount of pension payments will surpass contributions by 2027, leading to a fund deficit in 2041 and e ventual depletion in 2056. Despite the challenges in fixing the rates first, the rival parties have managed to find some common ground. To prevent the anticipated exhaustion of the national pension fund, which is about 30 years away, it is considered prudent to reform the rates promptly before moving on to structural reforms. Pension reform is an urgent national task that cannot be postponed. At the very least, the contribution and income replacement rates need to be reformed swiftly to delay fund exhaustion. Missing this opportunity could make future pension reforms even more challenging.