Why is a waterlocked country like Australia buying K9 self-propelled howitzers from S. Korea?

Posted on : 2021-12-15 18:27 KST Modified on : 2021-12-15 18:37 KST
Many are saying the country is bolstering its military arsenal with a view to rein in China
The K9 Thunder self-propelled howitzer (from the website of Hanwha Defense)
The K9 Thunder self-propelled howitzer (from the website of Hanwha Defense)

While on a state visit to Australia on Monday, South Korean President Moon Jae-in met for a summit with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison. The two agreed to expand their defense industry cooperation in areas including exports of K9 self-propelled howitzers.

Later that day, the Australian government inked a purchasing deal with Hanwha Defense, which produces the K9.

Australia is scheduled to purchase 30 K9 howitzers and 15 K10 ammunition resupply vehicles at a reported cost of 1.09 trillion won (US$918 million). Prior to that contract, South Korea had exported around 600 of the howitzers to six different countries for a total cost of around 2 trillion won.

The first South Korean exports were to Turkey in 2001, followed by Poland in 2014; India, Finland, and Norway in 2017; and Estonia in 2018. Australia has now become the eighth member of the “K9 family” that includes South Korea.

These latest exports are a part of a project the South Korean defense industry and defense authorities have been pursuing for over a decade. The K9 was previously selected as a focus for priority negotiations in the Australian self-propelled artillery project in 2010, only for Australia to abruptly cancel that project. In the eyes of Korea’s industry and defense authorities, the latest coup marks the achievement of a long-cherished ambition.

Why exactly is Australia, a country that is surrounded on all sides by water and lacks enemies, importing a weapon for ground warfare like the K9?

Explaining the significance of the purchasing deal in a briefing that day, Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) chief Kang Eun-ho said, “The K9 self-propelled howitzer will furnish an opportunity for Australia to achieve a more three-dimensional army by advancing its current towed artillery-centered firepower support system management concept to a firepower support concept that guarantees survivability and enables timely strike support.”

For the layperson unversed in weapons systems, terms like “towed artillery” and “self-propelled howitzer” may seem unfamiliar. The difference between self-propelled artillery and a tank might also seem unclear.

The Korean Armed Forces’ K2 Black Panther battle tank (from the website of the Ministry of National Defense)
The Korean Armed Forces’ K2 Black Panther battle tank (from the website of the Ministry of National Defense)

At first glance, a self-propelled howitzer and tank may appear similar. Both have a continuous track underneath and are armored on all sides, with a gun on top.

But the two are quite different when it comes to purpose and design.

A tank is used in front-line warfare to strike and destroy enemy positions and other tanks, breaking quickly through the front to topple the enemy camp. During World War II, Nazi Germany’s tanks swept through Europe in a blitzkrieg breakthrough campaign.

Since tanks have to operate on the front lines, they are designed with fast and agile mobility, along with armoring robust enough to absorb strikes from enemy tanks. A tank gun has an effective range of around 3 km. Tanks are operated by armor branches.

Self-propelled artillery is used at the rear, dozens of kilometers behind the front lines. Since its primary role is to provide support fire for the front line, it has a much longer range than a tank. The K9 self-propelled howitzer has a maximum range of 40 km.

Unlike a tank, which takes aim at a target for destruction, self-propelled artillery is fired in barrages of multiple shells, inflicting damage on the enemy with the resulting shrapnel.

Self-propelled artillery has weaker armor than that of a tank, which has to withstand shelling from enemy tanks. The K9 has enough armoring to withstand fire from a heavy machine gun and shell fragments. Self-propelled artillery is operated by the infantry branch.

An ROK Armed Forces truck pulls a 155 mm artillery piece. (still from a video on the ROK Army’s Facebook page)
An ROK Armed Forces truck pulls a 155 mm artillery piece. (still from a video on the ROK Army’s Facebook page)

As the name indicates, self-propelled artillery moves on its own. It’s easy to understand by contrasting it with towed artillery, which is hauled around by a truck or other vehicle.

Towed artillery is vulnerable to enemy strikes. The process of carrying it by truck, removing it, setting up an encampment, and preparing for fire takes the better part of an hour.

It’s easy for the enemy to detect when towed artillery is being set up, and the weapons may be rendered defenseless against enemy fire or aerial bombing. Towed artillery also lacks the protective armoring of self-propelled artillery, which makes it even more vulnerable to enemy attack.

A visual of 105 mm artillery being fired. (still from the ROK Army’s website)
A visual of 105 mm artillery being fired. (still from the ROK Army’s website)

Self-propelled artillery has a continuous track, engine, armoring, and gun, which allow the user to quickly navigate to a desired location and commence firing immediately without complex preparations.

Equipped with a 1,000-horsepower engine, a K9 howitzer can travel at a maximum speed of around 67 kph (41 mph). The K9 also has an automatic fire control system and equipment for ammunition transport and loading, which allows it to launch as many as three rounds in 15 seconds during rapid fire — or six to eight rounds per minute.

Self-propelled artillery can also withdraw from its position a minute or two after firing and relocate to a different position to recommence firing. Under enemy bombardment, counter-battery radar is typically used to trace the trajectory of enemy shells and determine the position they were fired from, allowing one’s own side to launch counter-battery fire and destroy the enemy artillery.

The ability of self-propelled artillery to quickly move from its original fire position and take up a new position enables it to weather counter-battery attacks. This factor has made it an artillery mainstay in countries around the world.

Norway decided to phase in K9 howitzers in 2017. This photo shows the K9 in a test assessment on the ground in Norway. (from the website of Hanwha Defense)
Norway decided to phase in K9 howitzers in 2017. This photo shows the K9 in a test assessment on the ground in Norway. (from the website of Hanwha Defense)

Development of the K9 self-propelled howitzer began in South Korea in 1989, with the weapon entering full-scale use by the armed forces in 1999. It has a 155 mm 52-caliber gun. A single unit costs between 4 and 5 billion won (US$3.3 million to US$4.2 million)

According to figures from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, the K9 accounted for 48% of the global self-propelled artillery export market between 2000 and 2017. Its market share exceeds that of Germany’s PzH 2000, which has been called the world’s best self-propelled howitzer. That has much to do with the K9 boasting similar performance to the German artillery, but at a fraction of the cost.

The countries that had previously imported the K9 — Turkey, Poland, India, Finland, Norway and Estonia — all face strong regional security threats.

Poland, Finland, Norway and Estonia all have to contend with the military threat posed by neighboring Russia. All of them have experience with being either attacked or threatened by Russia. Their interest in the K9 arises from the perceived security threat posed by Russia’s policies of expansion, such as invading Ukraine.

Turkey sees its biggest security threat as lying in the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, an armed guerrilla movement advocating Kurdish separatism and independence.

India is involved in disputes with Pakistan and China. In June of this year, India positioned K9 howitzers in eastern Ladakh, a region in the Himalayas where it is in a border dispute with China.

The countries that have imported the K9 to date have all been non-Western states facing strong regional security threats.

South Korea’s defense industry is hoping the exports to Australia, a key US ally, will open up the possibility of increased exports to Western countries as well.

While on a state visit to Australia, South Korean President Moon Jae-in responds to reporters’ questions at a joint press conference with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison at the Australian Parliament House in Canberra on Monday. (Yonhap News)
While on a state visit to Australia, South Korean President Moon Jae-in responds to reporters’ questions at a joint press conference with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison at the Australian Parliament House in Canberra on Monday. (Yonhap News)

Why is Australia importing the K9? Its security environment differs from those of the previous six countries to import the howitzer. It’s an island country and a continent unto itself with no clear enemies encroaching on its turf.

Many analysts are saying Australia’s aim is to rein in China. Australia is a member of both the Quad, a four-country dialogue (including the US, Japan, and India) with the goal of hemming China in, and AUKUS, a trilateral security pact (with the US and UK) to respond to Chinese threats.

During the South Korea-Australia summit Monday, Morrison stressed the importance of China containment frameworks like AUKUS and the Quad; the joint statement released after included mention of issues in the South China Sea, where US-China tensions are rising.

At the heart of Australia’s “2020 Force Structure Plan” are its aims of expanding its security role in the Asia-Pacific region and beefing up its response capabilities in preparation for China’s continued rise. It views bolstered military capabilities as crucial to enhancing its standing within the region. It has also reportedly established strategies to reflect the cases of India and China and disputes in the South and East China seas.

Last year, the Australian government embarked on a plan that involved investing AU$270 billion (US$192 billion) in defense over a 10-year period. It is attempting to build not only its navy and air force capabilities but its army capabilities as well in order to hold off China’s advancement.

The Australian army is investing AU$55 billion in new acquisitions of tanks, self-propelled artillery, armored vehicles, mobile vehicles, and missiles. The K9 purchase is part of that.

The Australian government intends to produce and supply the self-propelled artillery locally rather than importing finished K9 howitzers from South Korea. It plans to build a self-propelled artillery manufacturing facility in Geelong, a city of over 200,000 people that was previously home to a factory for US automaker Ford.

Many Geelong residents were left unemployed when Ford pulled out in 2016, and Morrison made a campaign pledge in May 2019 to attract a self-propelled artillery factory to the city from overseas.

DAPA’s Kang Eun-ho pledged to “spare no effort to transform Geelong into a munitions innovation city along the lines of Changwon in Korea.”

By Kwon Hyuk-chul, staff reporter

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]

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