Hong Kong. March 13. INTERFAX - South Korea's National Defense Procurement Administration (DAPA) has supported plans to purchase additional F-35A fighter-bombers and SM-6 sea-based anti-aircraft missiles, Yonhap reported on Monday.
"In order to strengthen deterrence against the growing military threats from North Korea, South Korea has approved large-scale defense projects: the purchase of an additional batch of F-35 stealth fighters and SM-6 sea-based interceptor missiles," the agency informs.
It is planned to allocate $ 2.85 billion for the acquisition of the F-35 - for the period up to and including 2028. However, DAPA did not specify how many planes they intend to purchase. At the moment, the South Korean Air Force is armed with 40 F-35A, and Seoul is expected to buy another 20 units.
In turn, SM-6 missiles are planned to be installed on new KDX-III Batch II destroyers with the Aegis missile defense system (Aegis): these ships should enter service in the coming years. At the moment, the South Korean military is armed with SM-2 anti-aircraft missiles on current Aegis destroyers, but they want to get more modern interceptor missiles with a longer range.
