From a legacy self-propelled howitzer to a new unmanned ground vehicle and a high-tech drone, a dozen South Korean companies showcased their advanced defense products at a major U.S. defense exhibition in Washington on Tuesday.
The Association of the United States Army (AUSA) 2023 Annual Meeting and Exposition kicked its three-day run on Monday, bringing together defense and government officials among over 33,000 attendees and some 800 enterprises and exhibitors from 80 countries.
A group of South Korean companies installed the “Korea Pavilion” at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, as South Korea has emerged as a prominent arms exporter in the wake of the war in Ukraine.
At the exhibition, Hanwha Defense USA, a subsidiary of Hanwha Aerospace Co., displayed the K9 self-propelled howitzer paired with an ammunition supply vehicle, as well as its “Arion-SMET” unmanned ground vehicle.
A K9 self-propelled howitzer on display during the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) 2023 Annual Meetin
g and Exposition at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington on Oct. 10, 2023. (Yonhap)
A K9 self-propelled howitzer on display during the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) 2023 Annual Meeting and Exposition at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington on Oct. 10, 2023. (Yonhap)
Arion-SMET stands for autonomous and robotic systems for intelligence off-road navigation — small multi-purpose equipment. It is an upgraded version of an infantry combat support vehicle that Hanwha Aerospace developed in 2019 under a military-civilian cooperation project.
“Part of the reason being here is to educate. We want the larger U.S. defense market to understand who we are and what capabilities we have,” Bernard Champoux, senior executive vice president of Hanwha Defense USA, told Yonhap News Agency.
He noted that Hanwha’s defense business efforts coincided with the commitments by the South Korean and U.S. administrations to strengthen and broaden their bilateral alliance.
“We ju
st celebrated 70 years (since the alliance treaty was signed), both presidents have made a commitment to find ways to expand it beyond just a bilateral security alliance to the economic alliance and to technology,” he said. “I think that’s in both of our countries’ national interest.”
Among the Korean firms was Poongsan Corp. The company displayed a wide variety of ammunition products, including 155-mm artillery projectiles.
“Here in the U.S, we have focused largely on the sporting ammunition segment, but we want to take this opportunity to promote other ammunition products to expand our business opportunities to many more countries,” said Yoon Jun-suk, a senior public relations manager at the company.
Poongsan Corp.’s ammunition products are on display during the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) 2023 Annual Meeting and Exposition at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington on Oct. 10, 2023. (Yonhap)
Poongsan Corp.’s ammunition products are on display during the Association of
the United States Army (AUSA) 2023 Annual Meeting and Exposition at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington on Oct. 10, 2023. (Yonhap)
Also at the event, Taekyung Electronics Co. showcased its multipurpose lightening broadcast drone designed for 24 hour rescue and surveillance operations, while Young Poong Electronics Co., which displayed its multi-sensor image fusion system for situational awareness.
Last year, South Korea’s arms exports hit a record high of $17.3 billion. The country has been aiming for a 5 percent share in the global arms export market by 2027 to become the world’s fourth-largest defense exporter.
Source: Yonhap News Agency
