Yoon Administration Launches Full-Scale Sales to Europe and the US Based on the Paul 'Defense Treaty'

Yoon Administration Coordinates Various Defense Exhibition Schedules for Second Half
Following Korea-US RDP Talks, Participates in North America's Largest Exhibition 'AUSA'
"To Strengthen Korean Defense Exports, Must Penetrate US Market"

The government is embarking on a full-scale sales campaign in the second half of the year to expand defense exports. Having laid the groundwork for additional defense contracts through President Yoon Seok-yeol's visit to Poland, the plan is to use this as a turning point to enter new markets and provide tailored support. President Yoon will also personally review the defense export strategy soon. The government, agencies, and related companies are also preparing to attend a large-scale defense exhibition held in Washington D.C. in the second half of the year.

According to the Presidential Office and government ministries on the 21st, the government has begun coordinating schedules to participate in various overseas defense export consultation meetings in the second half of the year. The 'Poland International Defense Industry Exhibition (MSPO 2023)' held in Kielce, Poland in September and the 'Association of the United States Army (AUSA 2023)' scheduled to be held in Washington in October are representative events. A government official added, "Domestic defense companies are seeking opportunities to enter new markets, meet new buyers, and promote excellent domestic defense products."

First, the plan is to concentrate all support capabilities on 'MSPO 2023,' which President Yoon expressed high expectations for during the recent Korea-Poland summit. President Yoon revealed Poland's 'plan to additionally procure Korean-made weapons' and evaluated, "Korea will participate as a leading country in the Poland International Defense Exhibition, providing an opportunity to widely promote the achievements of defense cooperation and the excellence of K-Defense."

At the 'Defense Export Strategy Evaluation Meeting' chaired by the National Security Office the day before, thorough preparation was also urged. Deputy Director Im Jong-duk said, "MSPO is the first overseas defense exhibition in which the Republic of Korea participates as a leading country," and previewed, "At MSPO, known as one of Europe's top three defense exhibitions, domestic representative weapon systems such as the K-2 tank, K-9 self-propelled howitzer, and FA-50 will be displayed." So far, participation by excellent domestic defense companies such as Hyundai Rotem, Hanwha Systems, Hanwha Aerospace, Kia, Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), LIGNEX1, Hunid, SNT, Poongsan, LS Mtron, and i3 System has been confirmed.

In October, preparations are also underway to participate in 'AUSA 2023' held in Washington. AUSA is the largest annual ground forces defense exhibition in North America, hosted by the Association of the United States Army, attracting global defense companies aiming at the world's largest U.S. market every year. Our government is also discussing plans to create weapon system videos of key products such as the K9 self-propelled howitzer, Cheongung II, Hyungung, and tactical surface-to-surface guided missiles to distribute to various governments and companies.

In particular, the U.S. is considered a market that Korea must penetrate to establish a sustainable defense export system. If Korea fails to enter the U.S. market, which approaches approximately 500 trillion won annually, there will inevitably be limits to expanding export volume. Fortunately, some barriers to entering the U.S. market have been resolved. Following the first Korea-U.S. summit held in Seoul last May, where President Yoon and U.S. President Joe Biden agreed to begin discussions on the RDP, known as the defense sector 'Free Trade Agreement (FTA),' discussions among working-level officials have accelerated after President Yoon's visit to the U.S. last April. The Presidential Office is also working on related legal and institutional arrangements for the common interests of the bilateral security alliance.

A domestic defense exhibition is also scheduled. The '2023 Seoul ADEX (Seoul International Aerospace & Defense EXhibition),' prepared in connection with the 70th anniversary of the Korea-U.S. alliance, is expected to host about 200 high-ranking overseas defense officials and approximately 550 companies. Plans are underway to expand the exhibition beyond general defense to include urban air mobility platforms and the space sector.

A session where President Yoon directly reviews the defense export strategy is also expected around the major scheduled defense exhibitions. This will be the second 'Defense Export Strategy Evaluation Meeting' chaired by President Yoon since April, and since he directly instructed government and companies to cooperate to expand defense exports after his visit to Poland, it is to verify the implementation process and strategy formulation.

Some expect that the government’s easing of defense regulations to expand defense exports may also be discussed. A Presidential Office official said, "The government's commitment to strengthening defense exports was confirmed at the summit with Poland, and since President Yoon also directly instructed follow-up measures, sessions to receive reports and review these step-by-step will continue," adding, "We will provide wholehearted support so that our government, agencies, and companies can achieve tangible results at various global events being prepared at the government level."