Global Courant 2023-04-21 02:16:06
Seoul, South Korea — South Korea’s presidential office confirmed that the pending agreement for the export of machine guns, main battle tank shells and reactive armor to Poland will continue as planned amid controversy after President Yoon Suk Yeol expressed his intentions to send weapons directly to Ukraine if a large-scale attack on Poland would take place. citizens is executed by Russia.
President Yoon’s remarks were strongly criticized by Russian officials who said “such actions would surely ruin Russian-Korean relations”.
In Yoons interview with Reutershe said that if there were a large-scale attack on Ukrainian civilians, a massacre or a serious violation of the laws of war by Russia, it could be difficult for South Korea to push for humanitarian or financial support alone.
The presidential office immediately clarified that President Yoon was merely referring to a “hypothetical situation” and explained to reporters “what South Korea will do in the future will depend on Russia’s action.”
President Yoon is expected to meet with President Joe Biden at the White House next week for his second bilateral summit and the two leaders are expected to discuss “a shared vision of a strong and deeply integrated US-ROK alliance that brings peace, stability and maintain prosperity. in the Indo-Pacific and beyond,” the White House announced Wednesday.
South Korean companies have begun to enter the global arms market to fill the gap in the international arms shortage. Last year, South Korea’s arms exports soared to a record $17.3 billion and Hanwha Aerospace, South Korea’s largest defense company, accounts for more than half of the country’s overseas arms exports, according to the South Korean Department of Defense.
Hanwha Aerospace is the largest defense contractor, March 16, 2023, in Changwon, South Korea.
ABC news
In the case of Poland, South Korea currently exports tanks, fighter jets, howitzers and multiple rocket launchers as Poland has sent its conventional weapons to Ukraine.
The weapons exported to Poland include 180 K2 main battle tanks from Hyundai Rotem and 672 K9 A1 self-propelled howitzers from Hanwha Aerospace. Hanwha’s first 24 howitzers were delivered to Polish soil last December as the company explores ways to manufacture some of their product in Poland as well.
“We have 10 K2 tanks and 24 K9 howitzers on Polish soil. I emphasize that this is only the first batch of equipment to be delivered to Poland. There will be more deliveries next year,” said Mariusz Błaszczak, Deputy Prime Minister and That is what the Minister of National Defense has said while retrieving equipment from South Korea last December.
It took Hanwha Aerospace less than half a year to win an export deal and deliver the product to Poland – an unprecedented speed in signing and executing an arms contract, as it is a process that normally takes four to five years. For Hanwha it was the largest order from abroad.
Hanwha Aerospace’s Multiple Rocket Launcher Chunmoo spins for a test drive, March 16, 2023, in Changwon, South Korea.
ABC news
“The war in Ukraine is dwindling the inventory of conventional weapons, such as self-propelled guns, rockets and grenades, which are most commonly used in real wars. As major arms-producing countries such as the US and Germany have reduced production lines for conventional weapons, it will take years to meet the demand, but South Korea was ready,” said Chae Woo-suk, the chairman of the Korea Defense Forces. Industry Association. ABC news. “Poland imported new weapons to defend itself against South Korea to cover the shortage after exhausting many old existing weapons that supported the Ukrainian war.”
Hanwha Aerospace, a subsidiary of the South Korean conglomerate Hanwha Group, supplies most of the country’s military with howitzers and combat vehicles. As one of the few countries in the world still technically at war, South Korea’s armory companies have maintained and improved conventional weapons production to equip the more than 3.6 million army personnel.
Despite playing second fiddle in the arsenal industry to companies in the West, South Korean companies like Hanwha have a comparative advantage in their manufacturing capabilities. Hanwha explained that their main advantage is that they can meet requirements in a shorter time as they are relatively free from the global logistical disruptions of assembling their howitzers and war vehicles. For example, 92% of Hanwha’s K9 howitzer parts are manufactured in South Korea.
Hanwha Aerospace’s K9 Howitzer faces a driving test, March 16, 2023, in Changwon, South Korea.
ABC news
“Our strong local manufacturing ecosystem has enabled us to be a major player providing high-performance weapons systems, such as our artillery and armored vehicles. And the localization rate reaches more than 80%,” Dae-young Kim, Executive Vice President of Hanwha Aerospace, told ABC News. “Many thought that conventional weapons such as main battle tanks and artillery systems do not necessarily belong to the 21st century combat environment. But as seen in the war in Ukraine, artillery capabilities still play an essential role, and Hanwha Aerospace has the power to deliver them.”
Hanwha’s export agreement with Poland expanded the production line in Changwon, and about 50 additional workers committed to production of the K9 Howitzer in March to increase production capacity to meet export demand.
“It takes about 100 days to complete one K9 howitzer, starting with laying the foundation slab and conducting a road test,” production manager Cha Yong-su of the Hanwha Aerospace Changwon factory told ABC News. “Skilled workers and the automated robots that make the hectic schedule possible.”
The South Korean government has reiterated its official position that it will not send direct lethal aid to Ukraine amid the current controversy.
