By Diplomacy Journal Lee Kap-soo

The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) announced on Feb. 24 that DAPA Minister Seok Jong-gun visited the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Egypt from March 17 to 21 (local time) to expand defense exports.

 
DAPA Minister Seok attended IDEX in the UAE, the largest defense exhibition in the Middle East and North Africa, where he met with senior defense officials from various countries. He met with key defense officials from the UAE to discuss ways for Korean defense companies to participate.

In particular, at IDEX, Seok signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Saudi Arabian side on the mutual acceptance of government quality assurance for military goods and services.

This paves the way for the Defense Agency for Technology and Quality to guarantee the quality of domestic military products exported to Saudi Arabia on behalf of the Saudi government.

Seok then traveled to Egypt with other South Korean defense companies, including Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and Hanwha Aerospace, to inspect cooperation plans for the anti-tank missile Cheon-Gum and the light attack aircraft FA-50.

He met with Egyptian Air Force Commander General Mahmoud Fouad Abd el-Gawad and said that if the Egyptian Air Force adopts the FA-50, Korea will provide comprehensive support, including follow-up logistics support.

He also visited 'Factory 200', the local production plant of the K9 self-propelled howitzer in Egypt, and attended a steel cutting ceremony to mark the start of full-scale production. This is considered an important step for the Korean defense industry to expand its global market and strengthen cooperation.