South Korea’s presidential office and Hyundai Rotem declined to comment on the contract amount when reached by Bloomberg News.
“The scale of ground equipment exports under the framework agreement represents the largest defence export to Latin America,” the presidential office said in a statement. It said if the deal is implemented, it would be the first time Korea exported the K2 tank to Latin America. Previously, it has only signed a deal to ship the tanks to Poland.
The announcement comes months after Poland signed a US$6.5 billion deal to purchase K2 tanks in the Nato member’s latest move to shore up its military capabilities following Russia’s invasion of neighbouring Ukraine.
South Korean defence manufacturers have gained a reputation for speed and reliability in recent years, honed by decades of preparing their armed forces for a potential conflict with their heavily militarised neighbour, North Korea.
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South Korea is ranked as the world’s 10th largest weapons exporter, according to a March report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, and is aiming to become number four by 2027.
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