India and South Korea Agree to Co-produce Military Equipment and Boost Defense

India and South Korea have agreed to co-produce advanced air defense platforms and launch the KIND-X accelerator to foster innovation in defense technology.

On April 20, India and South Korea agreed to expand joint production of military equipment by broadening their defence cooperation. Significantly, this partnership follows the two sides already co-manufacturing the K9 Vajra, a specialized artillery gun, and now extending the same manufacturing model to futuristic technologies such as air defence platforms. An announcement regarding the launch of a “Korea-India Defence Accelerator” (KIND-X) was also made during the summit talks between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung. This aims to serve as an innovation platform to connect businesses, incubators, defence start-ups, and universities from both sides.

Furthermore, the Indian Premier and his South Korean counterpart also reaffirmed their commitment to the 2020 MoU on the “Roadmap to Defence Industry Cooperation”, thereby highlighting the strategic importance of India-ROK cooperation in defence industries. They were satisfied with the progress of the successful joint venture for K9 Vajra artillery guns, with the second batch currently under production. At the same time, efforts have also been initiated to replicate the K9 manufacturing model in other futuristic defence technology platforms like “self-propelled air defence gun-missile systems” and other areas of mutual interest.

Moreover, the two leaders also agreed to launch the India-ROK Industrial Cooperation Committee, with its first meeting scheduled for later this year. It is conceptualized as a new dialogue mechanism that would be headed by the ministers in charge of industries in both countries. This would be supplemented with a joint committee meeting on defence industry cooperation and the inaugural Defence and Foreign Affairs 2+2 dialogue at the vice-ministerial level later. According to CIO Bulletin, this development marks a significant boost to India-South Korean ties through cooperation in advanced defence technologies for making both countries safer.