World renowned for its cutting-edge devices and cars, South Korea looks set to win new levels. According to the 2024 Military Strength Ranking, the state is now the fifth-ranked defense power in the world, yielding only to the USA, Russia, China, and India.
Recently, this Asian country has emerged as one of the fastest-growing defense manufacturers, steadily earning reputation on the international level. Over the last decade, South Korea’s defense exports have surged by 12 %, making it the world’s 10th major supplier with a 2 % share of global arms exports.
South Korea’s martial exports were the first to surpass goods for the first time in history in 2021, but the country still ranks among the largest beneficiaries of weapons, largely from the US. South Korea wants to export$ 20 billion worth of defense to the military this year, which is a significant increase from the$ 20 billion in arms export contracts signed in 2023.
Seoul will continue to expand its presence in the meantime, as the government has recently announced an ambitious program to export 5 % of all arms globally by 2027. By achieving this objective, South Korea would become the fourth-largest protection exporter in the world.
In order to achieve this, the government pledged to increase support for the arms business, placing a particular focus on game-changing advancements like AI and quantum physics. The Defense Innovation 4.0 initiative was launched as part of this policy, with some progress now being made in the first half of the month.
This includes launching Seoul’s next reconnaissance satellite into orbit, which will enable it to better monitor North Korea’s angry actions. Additionally, Daejeon established the Defense AI Center, which would manage the development of artificial knowledge in the field.
Four factors for victory
Making a discovery takes work, and South Korea’s success on the world’s weapons system trade market was a result of a number of factors. Uk Yang, a research fellow at the Seoul-based Asan Institute, has outlined four of them.
According to him, the first one is world-class efficiency.
” The advanced technology of Korea’s human market are now being applied to the development of weapons techniques, enabling the development of world-class arms systems”, Yang told this writer.
Firstly, this Asian country has the advantage of being able to provide battle-tested defense products.
He noted that” South Korea’s arms techniques are developed to counteract the North Korean danger and continue to be upgraded yet after they enter the frontline.” They have also been employed in legitimate activities with North Korea, where they have produced remarkable results.
The next strength lies in value.
” South Korea operates 500, 000 forces against the Northern Asian risk, so the North Korean government has achieved economies of scale”, the analyst said. ” This allows it to mass-produce developed arms, which can be purchased at relatively cheap costs”.
And, lastly, a speedy production schedule has even contributed to the success.
According to Yang,” the North Korean defence industry maintains large-scale production facilities, which allows for faster delivery compared to companies in the United States and Europe, in order to meet the constant demand of the North Korean military.”
What can South Korea present?
The country’s safeguard business manufactures a wide range of products, including property, marine, air and space systems. This includes, among other things, gentle weapons, ammunition, tanks, area warrior vessels, submarines, fight plane, multi-purpose satellites, area launchers and nuclear missiles.
Remarkably, the bulk of this equipment is made by six domestic producers, through joint ventures between private companies and government agencies. The government also offers financial services to South Korean arms exporters to promote international sales, in addition to being a source of initial demand for products from the defense sector. And recent initiatives have shown that China is quickly emerging as a significant player in the world’s defense sector.
A delegation of Polish defense officials traveled to Seoul in April to sign a$ 1.6 billion contract for the purchase of multi-barreled missile launchers. Two years earlier, South Korea and Poland signed a framework agreement, under which a major arms export deal worth$ 12.4 billion was concluded. That included exports of missile launchers, tanks, light combat aircraft and self-propelled howitzers.
In the Middle East, Seoul is strengthening ties with Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Specifically, the Saudi Arabia trip of South Korea’s Defense Minister Shin Won-sik earlier this year resulted in a$ 3.2 billion deal. A surface-to-air missile system capable of intercepting ballistic missiles and aircraft at a 40-kilometer altitude, the two countries came to terms on the purchase of Riyadh’s Cheongung II.
Closer to home, South Korea’s chief of the state arms procurement agency, Seok Jong-gun, met with his Malaysian counterparts in May to discuss ways to deepen arms industry cooperation. Last year, Malaysia had already chosen Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI ) to supply 18 FA-50 Block 20 fighters for$ 920 million. The partners are now engaged in negotiations to deliver a second batch no later than 2027.
It is worth noting that, compared with the Block 10 variant, which is owned by the South Korean Air Force itself, the Block 20 is a more advanced one. The aircraft is equipped with a modern radar system and can be used to conduct beyond-visual-range air-to-air missions.
Why does South Korea care about exports of defense?
Foreign trade accounts for a sizable portion of GDP, which is a major contributor to the nation’s outstanding economic growth. South Korea benefits from diversification of foreign trade as an export-oriented nation, and the international sales of domestically developed weapons systems are a prime example of that. Not only have its defense exports seen increases in sales, but also its customer base and product range have grown.
A security issue is perhaps the least important. Through lucrative deals and overseas orders, arms exports contribute to the development of the domestic defense industry, increasing the country’s military capacity. This is especially true for South Korea, a nation that is dealing with its northern neighbor’s ongoing threat and unpredictability.