South Korea to increase defense budget to a record $53.9 billion
South Korea plans to increase its defense budget by 8.2% to 73.28 trillion won, or about $53.9 billion. This will be the country’s largest military budget in its history, Defense News reports.
The increase in spending comes amid growing security concerns regarding North Korea, China and Russia. South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense said the plan is aimed at strengthening independent defense capabilities amid rapid changes in the security environment and a shrinking pool of personnel available for military service.
Transfer of operational control
Funding for preparations to transfer wartime operational control over forces from the United States to Seoul will increase by 35%. South Korea seeks to complete this process by 2029. After that, South Korean command will lead both its own and U.S. forces in the event of a conflict on the Korean Peninsula.
Funds will also be directed toward developing systems to detect and respond to nuclear and missile threats from Pyongyang, as well as a new military information-sharing system for the combined command. Amid a decline in the number of conscripts, Seoul plans to strengthen its reserve forces and transfer some non-combat functions to the private sector.
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Drones and defense technologies
The plan provides for increased spending on artificial intelligence, unmanned ground surveillance systems and drones. The budget for the use of unmanned aircraft will rise by nearly 20% compared with the previous year. The military plans to develop drone swarms, reconnaissance drones, loitering munitions and counter-drone systems, as well as train 500,000 “drone warriors.”
Spending on the KF-21 Boramae fighter jet will increase nearly 2.5-fold to 3.3 trillion won. Serial production of the first aircraft is already underway. Separate funding will be allocated for the L-SAM long-range air defense system, MUAV medium-altitude reconnaissance drones and the nuclear submarine program, which is allocated nearly 100 billion won.
In addition, the government intends to invest in semiconductors, aircraft engines, direct-energy lasers and quantum technologies. Spending also covers improvements to the welfare, pay and housing of military personnel, as well as support for small and medium-sized enterprises in the defense sector.
