BANGKOK ― The country’s leading arms producers are poised to boast their technological might and boost their potential for future exports at a trade fair in Thailand this week.
Defense & Security 2015 will kick off Monday in the Southeast Asian country’s capital for a four-day run, bringing together about 25 defense agencies and 400 military service providers from about 50 countries.
The biennial event is the largest military exhibition in the region, organizers said, having grown more than 30 percent since its inception in 2003.
South Korea will run a pavilion in a 424-square-meter space, the fourth-largest among participant nations after the U.S., Turkey and China.
It will house the booths of major ship and aircraft builders and other weapons makers, such as Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, Korea Aerospace Industries, Poongsan, S&T Motiv and Hanwha, as well as 13 smaller contractors and partner companies.
“While helping enhance the image of our defense industry, we will look into potential partnerships with other countries and companies and gather information on their technological progress and future contracts,” an official at the Korea Defense Industry Association said.
Lockheed Martin, Thales, SAAB, NIMR Automotive and other global manufacturers are also expected to display their cutting-edge products at the exhibition.
One of the most striking features will be Japan’s first-ever participation with a national pavilion, following a recent overturn of its strictly defensive postwar security law, which will allow its military to play a greater role and expedite overseas sales of weapons.
In April 2014, the Shinzo Abe administration unveiled an easing of its near-50-year ban on arms exports. Last month, it officially launched a defense procurement agency.
“This year’s exhibition will feature the latest defense and internal security equipment including high-tech weapons systems, guns, missiles, tanks, (unmanned) aerial vehicles, transport vehicles, vessels, satellites, plus a wide range of the latest military technology,” the organizers said in a statement. “Manufacturers of fire control systems, launchers and other important systems and hardware will also be featured.”
Powered by technological prowess and partnerships with major companies, South Korea has been pushing to shore up its charge into the international arms market, but a series of scandals involving top military executives and substandard parts has marred the industry’s standing at home.
Last year, its exports hit a record high of around $3.6 billion, with the number of exporters reaching 124, more than 2.6 times that in 2006, according to the association.
The country aims to become the world’s seventh-largest arms exporter by 2020.
“The product lineup has also grown more diverse. If ammunition and maintenance parts were our primary trade items in the past, the list expanded in virtually all areas, including maneuvering, ammunition and vessels, and now we have won large deals, such as for a submarine and jets,” the official added.
“Given the limits of our domestic market, exports are no longer an option but a must.”
By Shin Hyon-hee, Korea Herald correspondent(heehshin@heraldcorp.com)
