{"id":2200573,"date":"2023-03-29T19:14:18","date_gmt":"2023-03-29T10:14:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?p=2200573"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:07:48","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:07:48","slug":"how-the-defense-industry-helps-support-south-koreas-foreign-policy-goals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/03\/how-the-defense-industry-helps-support-south-koreas-foreign-policy-goals\/","title":{"rendered":"How the defense industry helps support South Korea\u2019s foreign policy goals"},"content":{"rendered":"
Arms sales mark the latest example of South Korean defense diplomacy, allowing it to form closer relations with countries that share its values.<\/span><\/p>\n For example, defense minister Lee Jong-sup <\/span>met<\/span><\/a> with his Vietnamese counterpart, Phan Van Giang, on March 28 and discussed bilateral defense industrial cooperation and naval consultations. Lee invited Phan to the South Korean <\/span>defense trade show<\/span><\/a> this October.<\/span><\/p>\n This visit echoes Lee\u2019s <\/span>trip<\/span><\/a> to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Poland last month, which centered around arms exports.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Considering recent trends, it is no surprise that the Yoon administration actively promotes defense exports. In 2022, South Korean arms sales <\/span>reached<\/span><\/a> $17.3 billion, launching the country as a significant player in the global arms market. It was a milestone figure for a country whose annual defense exports <\/span>hovered<\/span><\/a> between $100 million to $200 million at the beginning of the 21st century.<\/span><\/p>\n Arms exports have been integral to South Korea\u2019s national security interests. But they may exhibit newfound relevance in the ROK\u2019s statecraft as the Yoon administration explicitly links arms sales to its <\/span>values-based foreign policy<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n A push to distribute arms to seemingly as many partners as possible could lead to trouble with some of South Korea\u2019s powerful neighbors.<\/span><\/p>\n \u2018ECONOMIC LIFELINE\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n The defense minister <\/span>discussed<\/span><\/a> opportunities for joint weapons development with his UAE counterpart based on the <\/span>arms cooperation memorandum<\/span><\/a> signed during the January summit between President Yoon Suk-yeol and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n While in Abu Dhabi, Lee also <\/span>attended<\/span><\/a> the International Defense Exhibition (IDEX), the largest defense expo in the Middle East. While there, he showcased the South Korean defense industry\u2019s capacity.<\/span><\/p>\n In Poland, Lee reviewed the progress on the landmark $12 billion arms deal <\/span>signed<\/span><\/a> on the sidelines of the <\/span>2022 NATO summit<\/span><\/a>. He also <\/span>announced<\/span><\/a> that Seoul and Warsaw would hold joint exercises, demonstrating how arms sales can generate close military cooperation and tie South Korea\u2019s defense industrial base to global security challenges.<\/span><\/p>\n These recent deals reflect decades of engineering and resource development in the ROK arms industry. Under the \u201c<\/span>self-sufficient defense<\/span><\/a>\u201d doctrine of the 1960s, South Korea aimed to develop weapons indigenously to free its defense needs from <\/span>international political constraints<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n But as production capacity exceeded domestic needs, South Korea had to look abroad to sustain its defense industrial base.<\/span><\/p>\n In 2006, the Roh Moo-hyun administration <\/span>established<\/span><\/a> the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) to manage the arms industry centrally and improve its <\/span>global<\/span><\/a> competitiveness<\/span><\/a>. President Park Geun-hye used foreign visits to the <\/span>Philippines<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Peru<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Poland<\/span><\/a> to announce new arms deals.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n President Moon Jae-in followed suit with arms sales announcements in <\/span>Australia<\/span><\/a> and the <\/span>UAE<\/span><\/a>, referring to weapons export as a \u201c<\/span>future economic lifeline<\/span><\/a>\u201d for the South Korean economy.<\/span><\/p>\n Arms sales diplomacy continues under the current government as Yoon <\/span>declared<\/span><\/a> South Korea\u2019s ambitions to become the world\u2019s fourth largest arms seller by 2027. Yoon notably <\/span>raised<\/span><\/a> the <\/span>Reciprocal Defense Procurement Agreement<\/span><\/a> during U.S. President Joe Biden\u2019s visit to South Korea to help South Korean firms <\/span>enter<\/span><\/a> the expansive U.S. arms procurement market.<\/span><\/p>\n The National Assembly is also taking cue: a bipartisan group of lawmakers <\/span>visited<\/span><\/a> Norway and Estonia last November to promote South Korean weapons.<\/span><\/p>\n