[Column] The Need for Cautious 'K-Defense Industry Exports'

Are South Korea and Vietnam friends or foes? In the 1960s, South Korea and Vietnam were enemies facing each other in the Vietnam War. After 65 years, the two countries have become indispensable important partners. With the increase in international marriages between the two nations, they have even earned the nickname "countries of in-laws."

The rapid closeness between the two countries is due to many commonalities. Both experienced division and war in succession. In 1945, during World War II, Korea and Vietnam were liberated following Japan's surrender. The joy was short-lived. Korea was divided along the 38th parallel north, and Vietnam along the 17th parallel north. Vietnam split into the Republic of Vietnam in the south and the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (commonly called North Vietnam) in the north. Our government allied with South Vietnam. Diplomatic relations were established in 1956, and over 310,000 soldiers were dispatched to fight against the Viet Cong. However, diplomatic relations were severed after North Vietnam achieved communist unification.

The two countries reunited their hands starting with the inauguration of the Roh Tae-woo administration in 1988. This was thanks to the "Northern Diplomacy" policy. Northern Diplomacy refers to a policy of establishing diplomatic relations with socialist countries. Starting with Hungary in 1989, followed by the Soviet Union and China, diplomatic ties were successively established, and on December 22, 1992, relations with Vietnam were restored. Particularly, the alignment of mutual interests between the two countries also laid the foundation for diplomatic relations. At that time, Vietnam was implementing the reform and opening model called the "??i M?i (Renovation) policy," choosing market liberalization.

The Yoon Suk-yeol administration, marking the 30th anniversary of Korea-Vietnam diplomatic relations in 2022, invited Nguyen Xuan Phuc, President of Vietnam. The following year, President Yoon led an economic delegation to visit Vietnam. Since defense industry exports require government-to-government (G2G) cooperation and are long-term projects, defense companies accompanied the delegation. The results appeared. Vietnam showed keen interest in the domestically produced K-9 self-propelled howitzer. The export deal was finalized, amounting to about $300 million (approximately 430 billion KRW) for 20 units of the K-9. The export of the K-9 to Vietnam was notable as it was the first defense export to a communist country and marked entry into Southeast Asia.

However, concerns have also been raised. Along with the introduction of the domestically produced K-9 self-propelled howitzer, Vietnam has strengthened friendly relations with North Korea. Last year, Deputy Minister of Defense of Vietnam, Hoang Xuan Chien, visited North Korea and held talks with Kim Min-seop, Vice Minister of the North Korean Ministry of Defense, discussing military technology, defense industry, and other military cooperation. In January this year, President Luong Cuong sent a congratulatory message to Kim Jong-un commemorating the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations with North Korea, stating, "We are pleased to announce the launch of the '2025 Vietnam-North Korea Friendship Year.'" This has led to negative views that K-9 howitzer technology could leak to North Korea.

The United States is cautious about defense exports. It only exports weapons to allied countries and those that serve as military partners. The "AUKUS" alliance is a representative example. AUKUS is a security pact in the Indo-Pacific region formed in September 2021 by Australia (AU), the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States (US) to jointly develop nuclear-powered submarines and other advanced technologies. Although the U.S. is the closest security ally of both countries, it strictly limits sharing defense technologies protected under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and has required partners to establish export control systems equivalent to those of the U.S. Only recently have the parties begun to dismantle the barriers on defense technology, strengthening the security alliance.

While the government loudly promotes "K-Defense Industry" focusing solely on export volume, concerns arise about confidential leaks to North Korea and backlash from China, which seeks to check Vietnam. It is important to recognize that defense exports can serve as a catalyst to awaken the harsh realities of the international order.