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and logistics package, ammunition supplies and technical sup- Analysts expect that the deal with Poland could
port from the manufacturer. The first batch of 10 K2 tanks and 24 help gather momentum for South Korea’s arms
K9 howitzers was promptly delivered to Poland in December 2022, sales with Australia, Malaysia, Norway, the
following the contract signing in August, a defence ministry official United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
in Seoul said.
Hanwha Aerospace has a US$700 million-plus
South Korea will also supply 48 FA-50 light attack aircraft and 288 contract with the Australian government to
Chunmoo multiple rocket launchers to Poland. Under the US$3 billion supply armoured vehicles and self-propelled
contract with KAI, which manufactures the FA-50 aircraft, Poland artillery, and also plans to establish a manu-
will get the first batch of 12 fighters by the end of this year. facturing unit down under. The Philippines has
deployed KAI jets, while Egypt and Malaysia are
The remaining 36 aircraft will be the FA-50PL variant, specifically negotiating purchases of the same model. The
for Poland. This variant has been specially customised to fulfil the United Arab Emirates signed a multibillion-dollar
specific requirements of the Polish Air Force and features enhanced deal with South Korean defence contractor LIG
specifications, representing the highest level of performance avail- Nex1 for a surface-to-air missile system.
able for the FA-50 aircraft.
The South Korean company sold an undisclosed
According to KAI, the delivery of the FA-50PL aircraft is planned to number of the Cheongung Block-2 medi-
begin in the second half of 2025 and will continue in a sequential um-range air-defence systems to the UAE worth
manner until 2028. US$3.5 billion.

Discussing Warsaw’s rationale for turning to South Korea, Polish The country has also been selling warships,
defence minister Mariusz Błaszczak cited three factors: quality, speed submarines, landing platform docks, training
of delivery and Polish industry involvement. South Korean systems aircraft, as well as an array of weapon, elec-
certainly seem to be growing in competitiveness. Both the K9 and the tronic warfare and communication systems.
T-50, the training variant of the FA-50, have won in the procurement Defence exports have been particularly strong
competitions against European and Russian platforms.
among Asia-Pacific countries, where unresolved
disputes have prompted the region to look to
Błaszczak recently said, “There will be more deliveries in the Seoul to acquire stronger maritime deterrents.
coming years…I would like to thank the Korean side for The Philippines and Indonesia have been the
our cooperation and for that I can count on a partner- two biggest customers in the region, accounting
ship approach that breaks various barriers that appear. for 16 per cent and 14 per cent of sales over the
The cooperation that has been established between past five years, according to SIPRI.
Polish and Korean companies will certainly result in the
development of armaments production.”
From Importer to Major Exporter
This is not South Korea’s first venture into the Polish market. The According to International Trade Administration,
chassis of the K9 has been license-built in Poland since 2014 for the South Korea spends a defence budget that is
Krab howitzer. the world’s 10th largest in size and is the world’s
10th largest defence exporter. South Korea,
which has traditionally been heavily reliant upon
the United States in supplying defence equip-
ment to support its military forces, has become
a major defence manufacturer over the past
decades.

Being able to develop and grow its domestic
defence industry, South Korea has further trans-
formed itself into a global exporter of defence
articles. South Korea is projected to gener-
ate 29.7 trillion won (US$23.4 billion) in defence
exports by 2027. Last year, South Korean arms
exports grew by 140 per cent to US$17.3 billion
from US$7.25 billion in 2021, the highest arms
exports in the history of South Korea.
ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2023 | 29