Latest news with #DefenseAcquisitionProgramAdministration
Korea Herald
3 days ago
- Business
- Korea Herald
S. Korea to launch advisory committee for arms exports
South Korea is preparing to launch an advisory committee under the state arms procurement agency, consisting mostly of non-governmental experts, to boost its defense technology exports, sources close to the matter said Wednesday. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration recently came up with the plan and is "preparing to launch the committee,' a DAPA official told The Korea Herald via phone. 'The review and nomination of candidates will kick off in September.' The committee will consist of 15 members who are considered experts in arms exports. Each member will serve for two years and may be nominated for an additional two-year term. The committee members will be tasked with drafting strategies for the country's arms exports by cooperating with various teams within DAPA currently handling outbound shipments to continents including Europe, Africa, the Middle East, North America and more. The latest plan follows President Lee Jae Myung's campaign pledge to buoy the defense industry, making it one of the country's top four future sectors alongside semiconductor, secondary batteries and automobile. As part of his pledge, Lee said he plans to regularly preside over defense export promotion and strategy meetings, which usually involve Army officials from the Office of National Security. South Korea would become one of the world's top four arms exporters, Lee said. South Korea's arms exports fell to $9.5 billion last year after hitting a record high of $17.3 billion in 2022 and sliding to $13.5 billion in 2023. Separate government sources said last week that South Korea is likely to sign a deal worth some $6 billion to export additional K2 tanks to Poland later this month. If materialized, it would be Seoul's biggest single arms export contract to date. Under the deal set to be signed in late June, Poland would receive 180 K2 tanks, of which 117 units will be produced by South Korean defense contractor Hyundai Rotem Co. The rest will be manufactured locally by Warsaw's state-owned PGZ.
The Star
13-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
South Korea agrees to cut Indonesia share in fighter jet project
JAKARTA/SEOUL (Bloomberg): Indonesian and South Korean officials have signed a revised deal that significantly lowers Jakarta's financial commitment to the joint KF-21 fighter jet program, a move aimed at reviving long-stalled progress on the multibillion-dollar project. South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration said Friday that the new deal reflects a resolution made last year to revise Indonesia's share of the development costs. In August, DAPA had said Indonesia would contribute 600 billion won to the project, equivalent to about US$438.4 million, marking a drop from 1.6 trillion won originally pledged. DAPA said Indonesia's defense ministry had begun administrative procedures to fulfill the revised payment, a step it said it expects will reinvigorate defense ties between the countries. It added that both sides also agreed to expand cooperation beyond fighter jets to include ground and maritime systems. Indonesia's defense ministry declined to immediately comment. The new deal comes years after defense officials from Southeast Asia's largest economy agreed to contribute roughly 20% of the more than 8 trillion won project as it sought to upgrade aging military fleets. The KF-21 Boramae, developed by Korea Aerospace Industries, is intended to replace South Korea's fleet of F-4 and F-5 fighter jets. Indonesia is working on a localized variant known as IF-X, with state-owned Dirgantara Indonesia involved in assembly, maintenance, and production planning. Progress for the KF-21 program, aimed at producing a next-generation supersonic aircraft, was marred by funding disputes and other problems. Indonesia has been pursuing upgrades of its fleet of fighter jets on several fronts, including in an active contract with France's Dassault Aviation SA for 42 Rafale jets, signed in 2022 with an estimated value of $8.1 billion. Last week, Indonesian defense officials said they were in the early stages of evaluating an offer for China's J-10 fighters. This week, Turkey's president announced a deal to sell Jakarta 48 of its KAAN fighter jets currently under development. DAPA Director Seok Jong-gun, among the South Korean officials in Indonesia this week, said his visit marked a return to normal for defense ties between Seoul and Jakarta, moving on from what he described as a period of strain due to technical issues. -- ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
Korea Herald
13-06-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
Korea, Indonesia finalize deal to cut Jakarta's KF-21 contribution
South Korea and Indonesia have finalized an agreement to set Jarkarta's contribution to the joint development of the KF-21 Boramae fighter jet at 600 billion won ($437 million), the Defense Acquisition Program Administration said Friday. The agreement, signed during the Indo Defence exhibition in Jakarta earlier this week, follows more than a year of negotiations and delays surrounding payment terms and a diplomatic row over a technology leak. Indonesia has so far paid around 400 billion won. The remaining 200 billion won is to be paid under a revised schedule that is still under discussion with KAI, the DAPA explained. Indonesia initially joined the KF-21 program in 2016, agreeing to contribute around 1.7 trillion won — equivalent to 20 percent of the total development cost, according to DAPA — in exchange for technology transfer and co-development rights. The figure was later adjusted to 1.6 trillion won, with payments originally due by June 2026. In May 2023, Jakarta requested to reduce its contribution to 600 billion won and to accept a proportional reduction in technology transfer. It also asked to extend the payment deadline to 2034. Seoul also approved the poroposal later that year. However, the agreement was delayed after several Indonesian engineers at Korea Aerospace Industries were caught in January 2023 attempting to take classified KF-21 data stored on USB devices offsite, prompting Indonesia to protest the investigation. Tensions eased only after South Korean prosecutors cleared the engineers of charges and suspended prosecution on June 2. According to DAPA, the scope of technology transfer has yet to be finalized and will be determined after the KF-21's development phase concludes. Indonesia has also expressed interest in receiving a prototype aircraft, which may be negotiated in exchange for a further reduction in technology transfer.
The Star
13-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
Indonesia to cut contribution to South Korea fighter jet project
SEOUL: South Korea and Indonesia signed an agreement cutting down Indonesia's contribution in a South Korea-developed fighter jet project to about 600 billion won (US$439 million), South Korea's defence procurement agency said on Friday (June 13). South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said in a statement that DAPA and Indonesia's defence ministry officials signed an agreement this week concerning the KF-21 jet (pic) development project. Indonesia's defence ministry did not respond immediately to a request for comment. A decade ago, South Korea and Indonesia agreed to jointly develop the jet in a project worth 8.1 trillion won, with Jakarta agreeing to pay about 1.6 trillion won. However, Jakarta has since sought to renegotiate the deal, and last August Seoul decided to lower Jakarta's financial commitment to 600 billion won, as well as to make adjustments to its technology transfer plan, according to DAPA. Although the two countries agreed on the amount, additional discussions are needed on the payment deadline and the specific scope of tech transfer, Yonhap news agency said. Indonesia's defence ministry told DAPA it is undergoing administrative process to pay its remaining contribution to the KF-21 project, DAPA said. "If the contributions are paid as planned, we expect the defence cooperation between the two countries will gain momentum again," the agency said. - Reuters
Korea Herald
13-06-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
S. Korea, Indonesia finalize deal to cut Jakarta's payments for KF-21 fighter jet project
South Korea and Indonesia have finalized a deal to slash Jakarta's contribution to the joint KF-21 fighter jet project to 600 billion won ($443 million), less than one-third of the original amount, Seoul's defense procurement agency said Friday. The two sides signed the agreement at an arms exhibition in Jakarta on Wednesday, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration said, clearing uncertainties over the financing of the 8.1 trillion-won project. The project, launched in 2015, is designed to develop an advanced supersonic fighter jet. Indonesia had originally agreed to shoulder about 20 percent of the project's cost as a partner country through June 2026 in return for Seoul's technology transfers and other conditions. But Jakarta failed to keep up with payment deadlines and in May last year proposed lowering its total contribution to 600 billion won and reducing the level of technology transfers. While Seoul approved the cut to Jakarta's contribution last August, the two sides had struggled to sign a revised agreement amid tensions over a police investigation into alleged technology theft by Indonesian engineers at Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd., the KF-21's manufacturer, earlier that year. This week's signing appears to indicate the two sides have moved past the issue. "Indonesia's defense ministry has said it has begun administrative procedures to pay the remaining contribution amount and if the payments are made as planned, defense industry cooperation between the two countries is expected to gain momentum," DAPA said in a release. On the sidelines of the exhibition, DAPA officials met Indonesian Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin and Deputy Defense Minister Donny Ermawan Taufanto and agreed to expand defense industry cooperation beyond fighter jets to land-based and maritime systems. The KF-21 project is currently in its final stages, with the first production model set to be delivered to the Air Force in the second half of next year. (Yonhap)
