By Ju-min Park

SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korea's education ministry said on Friday it had agreed to freeze the number of new medical students at about 3,000 per year in a bid to end a 13-month dispute involving a walkout by trainee doctors and boycotting of classes.

Education minister Lee Ju-ho said, however, that the plan could only go ahead if all of the trainee doctors returned by the end of March.

Thousands of trainee doctors have walked off the job since February 2024 to protest a government plan to admit more students into medical schools, as both sides in the dispute argued over what is needed to fix the healthcare system.

The government had planned to increase admissions to medical schools by 2,000 starting in 2025 from the current 3,000 to meet what it projected to be a large shortfall of doctors by 2035.

"Our government's position that the medical school quota should be increased has not changed. But restoring trust between the medical community and the government is also very important," Minister Lee said.

Authorities have said more doctors were required in remote areas and to meet growing demands in a rapidly ageing society, but many doctors say pay and work conditions are skewing the healthcare system and should be addressed first.

Friday's offer by the education ministry marks a step back by the government after the administration of impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol had previously taken a firm line in trying to push through its medical reforms.

South Korea's health ministry said in January that about 90% of trainee doctors had resigned out of 13,531 eligible for hospital appointments. Medical students had also walked out of classrooms, with many yet to return.

The Korean Medical Association, the country's main lobby group for doctors, did not have any immediate comment.

Lee Jong-tae, president of the Korea Association of Medical Colleges, said he believed students would now return to school.

"I am asking all of us to work to have our students come back now," said Lee.

Yoon was impeached over his short-lived imposition of martial law last year. His December 3 decree had included an order for all medical personnel including trainee doctors who had left their jobs to return to work within 48 hours.

The idea of boosting the number of medical students initially had considerable public backing, but the impact of the walkout on the medical system had started to erode support.

The drawn-out dispute between trainee doctors and the government has left emergency care overstretched and surgeries delayed or cancelled.

Shin Yul, a political science professor at Myongji University, said the government had little choice but to try to resolve the stalemate now public support had soured, with the situation worsened by Yoon's impeachment over his martial law order.

"Now the majority want Yoon to be removed from office. The mood is not favourable for the government, and the government wants to minimise any problems," he said.

(Reporting by Ju-min Park; Editing by Ed Davies and Raju Gopalakrishnan)