South Korea has unveiled plans to acquire two more ground-based, anti-missile, early-warning radars and three Aegis-equipped destroyers as a part of its five-year defense blueprint for 2020-2024.
The announcement comes amid heightened tensions, with North Korea test firing a series of new missiles in the past week. According to the defense ministry, the new acquisitions, which are a key part of the defense plan, will help them to efficiently detect and intercept the threat posed by North Korean missiles.
South Korea has hiked its defense budget by 7.1{1f71c8e63fc312dbb7e68cbee9f84746085cdcbce567c037f7e85e4e98c84910} for the next five years, with plans to spend 290.5 trillion won. Out of this, 103.8 trillion won would be invested on improving defense capabilities, and rest will be spent on managing the forces, the ministry noted.
In order to improve its military shield, the Korea Air and Missile Defense system, the ministry has planned to acquire and deploy the two anti-missile early warning radars by next year. Seoul has also planned to build three Aegis-equipped destroyers with advanced radar systems, which will begin operations by 2028. Improved version of interceptors like the Patriot Advanced Capability (PAC)-3 and Cheolmae-II missiles will be deployed to enhance interception capabilities.