This Year’s ‘K Defense Exports’ First Knock on Middle East Market [Yang Nakgyu’s Defence Club]

Domestic Defense Companies to Participate in 'IDEX 2025'
Middle East Export Volume Expected to Reach 5 Billion Dollars

Domestic defense companies have decided to target the Middle East market first this year to boost K-defense exports. This is because Middle Eastern countries have given favorable evaluations of K-defense, rapidly emerging as a key market.

According to the industry on the 3rd, major domestic defense companies such as Hanwha Aerospace, Hanwha Systems, Hyundai Rotem, and Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) will participate in ‘IDEX 2025’ (International Defense Exhibition), the largest international arms fair in the Middle East and Africa region, held from the 17th to the 21st of this month at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). They plan to use the Middle East as a base to expand into the African market.

Middle Eastern countries highly value the cost-effectiveness and fast delivery of K-defense. Previously, in 2022, the UAE, in 2023 Saudi Arabia, and in 2024 Iraq imported the ‘Cheongung-II’ (M-SAM2). In 2022, Egypt signed an export contract for the K9 self-propelled howitzer. Last year, Iraq signed an export contract for the multipurpose utility helicopter ‘Surion,’ marking the first export of a domestically produced helicopter. Since the export contract for Cheongung with the UAE, exports have expanded to neighboring countries, raising expectations that the Surion export could also expand to Iraq’s neighboring countries.

Defense companies visited Saudi Arabia, which is promoting large-scale military modernization projects this year, to discuss K-defense export plans. The export scale is expected to reach 5 billion dollars (approximately 7.25 trillion won), including land, sea, and air sectors. Egypt is also reportedly showing interest in ground equipment and the FA-50 light attack aircraft.

Military diplomacy is also being expanded to support K-defense exports. From the 10th to the 20th of this month, joint exercises between the South Korean military and the UAE military will be conducted locally. During the training period, the South Korean military plans to promote the excellence of domestic weapon systems through performance demonstrations of domestically produced weapon systems such as the K2 tank and K9 self-propelled howitzer, as well as a public event showcasing the landing ship ‘Cheonjabong’ (LST-II, 4,900-ton class).

The defense industry plans to actively discuss defense exports to communist countries using the Middle East as a base. Hanwha Aerospace is currently negotiating with the Vietnamese government, which is undergoing military modernization, for the export of the K9 self-propelled howitzer. If the export is successful, it will be the first case of export to a communist country by a domestic defense company. Vietnam is also in conflict with China over territorial sovereignty in the South China Sea. This is also seen as a market expansion due to geopolitical risks, leading to expectations that Asia could emerge as a major market for K-defense in the future.

The government and industry expect that such export expansion will help achieve the K-defense export target of 20 billion dollars. Last year, the scale of K-defense exports remained at 9.5 billion dollars, about half of the target (20 billion dollars).