Although South Korea's position supports the Ukrainian struggle, Seoul must think twice about granting the request of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who asked South Korea to send the T-80U MBT (Main Battle Tank) and BMP-3 IFV (Infanry Fighting Vehicle).
South Korea has so far sent aid to Ukraine, but in the form of “non-lethal military assistance” worth US$2 million consisting of helmets, bulletproof vests and medicine. Recently, there is a dynamic, although not covered in aid, South Korea is rumored to be supplying heavy artillery munitions aimed at Ukraine.
Quoted from armyrecognition.com (31/5/2022), South Korean defense officials said the government had not officially started procedures for the export of munitions, but the military was reviewing whether it was able to supply the 155mm artillery munitions needed for the Canadian-delivered howitzers operated by Ukrainian forces. .
The South Korean government is reviewing exports of 155mm artillery munitions to Canada in a bid to help the country replenish stockpiles of munitions and weapons sent to Ukraine. The Canadian government recently asked South Korea whether it could export 100,000 155mm artillery munitions through diplomatic channels.
South Korean officials said the government had not yet formally started procedures for carrying out exports. But the military has reviewed whether it is capable of supplying artillery munitions given the stockpiles of weapons plus munitions that are also needed domestically.
Since last February, the Canadian government has delivered a number of M777 howitzers along with 155 mm munitions to the Ukrainian army. Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand on May 24 announced the country's plans to donate 20,000 standard 155 mm NATO artillery munitions to support the defense of Ukraine against the Russian invasion. Some say, the purchase of munitions worth 98 million Canadian dollars (US $ 77 million) from the US indicates the depletion of weapons supplies.
The 155 mm artillery munitions are manufactured by South Korea's Poongsan Corp. On May 29, 2022 it was reported that the military was considering sending its stockpile of munitions to Poongsan Corp. so the company could supply artillery shells to Canada without additional production, at below-normal prices.
The company will be paid for by the Canadian government and will also produce 100,000 artillery munitions for the South Korean military. Seoul's plan is to support Canada and Ukraine by supplying munitions at a lower cost.
The M777 is a 155 mm caliber towing howitzer that is in demand in the market and has been used in many battlefields. The M777 is manufactured by BAE Systems, UK. The M777 A2 weighs 4,200 kg, the howitzer can be deployed in 6 minutes 10 seconds and can be moved in 6 minutes 23 seconds. Two M777 A2s can be carried in the cargo hold of the C-130 Hercules.
Having a barrel length of 5.08 meters, the M777 A2 can fire projectiles M107 (24 km), M795 (28 – 37 km), ERFB (30 km) and Excalibur M982 (40 km). The normal speed of fire is 2 projectiles per minute and a maximum of 7 projectiles per minute. Apart from Canada, the M777 in Ukraine was also delivered by Australia.
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