Monday, December 13, 2021
More power for the army
Australia signs record arms deal with South Korea
In the arms alliance with the USA and Great Britain, Australia wants to strengthen security in the Indo-Pacific – especially with regard to China. Part of this is the modernization of the Australian Army. Canberra concludes a billion-dollar deal with South Korea.
Australia and South Korea have signed an arms deal with a business value of one billion Australian dollars. The deal, signed by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, is reportedly the largest arms deal between Australia and an Asian nation to date.
Among other things, it provides for the delivery of self-propelled artillery howitzers, ammunition supply vehicles and radars by the South Korean company Hanwha. Moon is currently on a four-day visit to Australia on the 60th anniversary of Canberra-Seoul diplomatic relations.
Foreign Secretary Peter Dutton said the deal would strengthen Australia’s firepower and security in the Indo-Pacific. It is one of several projects to modernize the Australian Army and ensure that it retains a capability advantage in the future. The Australian broadcaster “ABC” spoke of a “historic contract”.
In September the USA, Great Britain and Australia announced a new “security alliance”. In the alliance known under the abbreviation Aukus, Australia is to be given access to US technology for the construction and operation of nuclear submarines. As a result, France lost what was believed to be a 56 billion euro deal for submarines with diesel propulsion for Australia, which led to angry reactions in Paris. According to security experts, the new alliance is clearly directed against the military threat posed by China in the Indo-Pacific.