[Exclusive] Ministry of National Defense 2nd Vice Minister Appointment to Be Decided on the 6th of Next Month

Absorbing Defense Acquisition Program Administration Functions... 81 Personnel and 1 Trillion Won Budget Absorbed
Passage of Bill Uncertain Amid Opposition from National Assembly Opposition Lawmakers

The Ministry of National Defense will decide on the introduction of a second vice minister on the 6th of next month. The Ministry plans to absorb the research and development (R&D) functions of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), an external agency, and bring in personnel and budget. However, it seems unlikely that the bill will pass in its original form due to opposition from the opposition party.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to a government official on the 16th, the Ministry of National Defense plans to hold a military meeting next month to present the ‘Innovation Plan for the Defense R&D System.’ The plan involves transferring a total of six departments with 81 personnel (66 civil servants and 15 military personnel) from DAPA, including the Defense Technology Protection Bureau, Future Challenge Technology Project Team, and Advanced Technology Rapid Project Team, to the Ministry of National Defense. Additionally, the Ministry intends to take over DAPA’s defense technology policy and technical review functions and directly manage and supervise its affiliated organizations, the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) and the Defense Technology Promotion Research Institute. To this end, a Defense Technology Policy Office will be newly established and managed by the second vice minister.

Opposition Party: “Contrary to the Purpose of Establishing DAPA... Cannot Cooperate with Bill Passage”

The budget will also be significantly transferred. Based on this year’s defense budget, approximately 1.35 trillion won is expected to be moved to the Ministry of National Defense. This budget includes 990.7 billion won for core technologies, 234.1 billion won for future challenges, 58.3 billion won for rapid R&D, and 69.1 billion won for civil-military technology cooperation.

Immediate opposition from the opposition party is expected. Ahn Kyu-baek, a member of the National Defense Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, said, “The Ministry of National Defense’s transfer of DAPA functions goes against the purpose of establishing the agency, and the public does not agree with such defense policies.” Another member from the same party, Bu Seung-chan, emphasized, “Korean defense exports are doing better than ever, so there is no reason to improve defense industry policies,” and added, “It is difficult to accept the separation of weapons system R&D and core technology R&D.”

Establishment of ‘Defense Technology Innovation Institute’ by Merging Three Affiliated Organizations

In addition, the Ministry of National Defense plans to consolidate institutions that have had overlapping functions. This is because there are many organizations involved in developing or operationalizing weapons. The targets are the Defense Technology Promotion Research Institute under the Defense Technology Quality Authority, the Defense Rapid Acquisition Technology Research Institute under DAPA, and the Civil-Military Cooperation Promotion Institute under the Agency for Defense Development (ADD). These three organizations will be merged to establish the Defense Technology Innovation Institute.

DAPA Plans to Establish Regional Offices... Low Likelihood of Realization

The relocation of DAPA to Daejeon, which was also a pledge of the current administration, has been delayed by one year. In July last year, DAPA completed the first phase of relocation by moving key departments to the former Korea Racing Authority building in Seo-gu, Daejeon. Although a new office building was scheduled to be constructed on idle land at the Daejeon Government Complex by 2027, the construction will now only be possible by June 2028. This is due to a change to a turnkey method following the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s large-scale construction bidding procedures.

Besides this, DAPA plans to establish regional offices, but the feasibility is low. DAPA intends to reorganize the one-stop support centers for defense companies located in Daejeon, Gumi, and Changwon into regional offices such as the Gyeongnam Regional Office. This would be similar to the structures of the Military Manpower Administration (11 locations), Ministry of Employment and Labor (6 locations), and Ministry of SMEs and Startups (13 locations). However, this year’s government organization management guidelines stipulate ‘minimizing the establishment of new regional offices through work system efficiency,’ making it difficult to obtain approval from other ministries such as the Ministry of the Interior and Safety.