The veterans ministry said Wednesday it is seeking an 8 percent hike in its 2027 budget to expand veterans benefits, support independence fighters' descendants and host an international sports event for injured soldiers. The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs said it has proposed 7.22 trillion won ($5.25 billion) for next year's budget, up by 532 billion won from this year's 6.68 trillion won. The draft proposal calls for raising basic compensation for war veterans and allowances for persons of national merit, as well as benefits for descendants of independence fighters from Japan's 1910-45 colonization of the Korean Peninsula, the ministry said. The ministry recently unveiled plans to expand the eligibility of independence fighters' benefits to their third-generation descendants in certain cases, which will add around 2,500 new recipients. The ministry will lower the age threshold for those eligible to use veterans hospitals from the current 75 to 65, and continue to expand contracted medical institutions for veterans and their families. The proposed budget also aims to transform