By Na Jeong-ju
A presidential panel unveiled a plan Tuesday to increase the country’s arms exports to $4 billion by 2020, from $250 million in 2008, to make it one of the world’s top seven exporters of arms and defense technologies.
The country also aims to double the number of workers in the defense industry to 50,000 by that year and nurture it into a new economic growth engine and a major source of jobs, according to the Presidential Council for Future and Vision.
To attain the goal, the government plans to accelerate technology transfer between state-run and private arms developers, and encourage mergers and acquisitions in the private sector.
It also seeks to develop markets in Asia and Africa based on growing economic ties with the regions, the council said.
“Korea’s defense industry has high growth potential, but it has only focused on domestic demand,” Kwak Seung-jun, the council’s chairman, told reporters at Cheong Wa Dae. “We need to explore overseas markets in close cooperation with private partners.”
The blueprint came after the country’s bid to sell T-50 trainer jets to Singapore and the United Arab Emirates failed. Korea has also been actively seeking overseas sales of ammunition, self-propelled guns and tanks.
Korea’s $250 million exports in 2008 accounted for only 0.5 percent of the global exports totaling $55 billion.
In the five years from 2005, the United States accounted for 30 percent of global arms exports, followed by Russia with 23 percent, Germany with 11 percent and France with 8 percent, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
Korea was the world’s third-largest arms importer in the period and was also the largest customer for U.S. weapons systems.
Under the plan, the government will overhaul research and development in the defense industry to enhance the quality of products and raise price competitiveness.
The council suggested that civilian firms expand participation in the development of new weapons and projects to upgrade existing ones that have been mainly carried out by the state-run Agency for Defense Development.
According to the defense ministry, the country’s defense industry output totaled $6.5 billion as of 2008 and employed 24,000 workers.
About 90 local defense firms competed for a small-scale domestic market worth about 7.2 trillion won ($6.4 billion) in 2008.
South Korea faces a nuclear-armed North Korea across the world’s most heavily fortified border. The two sides are still technically at war as the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a truce, not a peace treaty.
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