By Lee Tae-hoon
The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) announced Thursday that it will provide financial support of up to 1 billion won ($896,629) for each of 12 high-priority weapons component development projects.
A spokesman of the state-run arms procurement agency said that the list of 12 weapons parts include the inertial navigation unit (INU) for the K-9 self-propelled 155mm howitzer.
“If Korea succeeds in developing an INU with its own technology, it will not only help our military to operate the K-9 howitzers in a more sustainable manner, but also help the country export them,”he said.
The DAPA spokesman said if a Korean arms contractor successfully develops an INU with a budget of 1 billion won over five years, it will create nearly 30 billion won in economic value.
He said DAPA plans to invest 6 billion won in the research and development (R&D) of key military components, up from 1.5 billion won in 2010.
The official said his agency forecast that Korea will be able to reduce the import volume of foreign military parts by 58 billion won, if its R&D project succeeds without a hitch.