Aju Business Daily

SEOUL -- South Korea endorsed the acquisition of dozens of Standard Missile-2 interceptors worth 340 billion won ($304 million) through a U.S. foreign military sales program for the defense of three new Aegis destroyers, which will be delivered from 2023.

The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), a state body in charge of procuring military equipment, said Friday that the acquisition of SM-2 interceptors produced by Raytheon was approved in a meeting chaired by Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo.

The SM-2 family was developed to provide air and cruise missile defense as part of the Aegis combat system on U.S. Navy ships. They are designed to engage high-speed, high-altitude anti-ship cruise missiles with midcourse guidance and radar support.

On its website, Raytheon said that due to global demand, it would restart its SM-2 missile line after halting production in 2013. "Australia, Japan, South Korea and the Netherlands aligned requirements and pooled resources to make a bundle purchase through foreign military sales, enabling Raytheon to resume production."

In May 2016, Hyundai Heavy Industries was selected for the KDX-III Batch II program which calls for the construction of three Aegis destroyers to be delivered from 2023. The Batch II program aimed at coping better with North Korean missile and submarine threats requires more electrical power, a high level of automation and an improved combat system capable of detecting and tracking targets at greater distances and with more precision.

South Korea operates three Sejong the Great-class Aegis destroyers armed with Hyunmoo-3C cruise missiles with a range of up to 1,000 kilometers. Seoul is developing Hyunmoo-4 missiles with a payload of more than two tons after U.S. President Donald Trump allowed Seoul to deploy missiles capable of flying for up to 800 km with no limit in its payload.