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US approves sales of 136 ‘PAC-3’ missiles to Korea

Posted November. 08, 2014 06:19,   

한국어

The State Department has approved sales of 136 PAC-3 missiles, including related equipment and parts, training and support, to Korea in the form of Foreign Military Sales (FMS) and notified Congress of the sales, said the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) under the U.S. Department of Defense on Friday.

PAC-3 is an air defense system that intercepts hostile ballistic missiles in the air 40 meters above the ground. It is an essential element of the Korea Air and Missile Defense (KAMD), a prerequisite for taking over wartime OPCON proposed by both the U.S. and Korea.

"It is vital to U.S. national interests to assist our Korean ally in developing and maintaining a strong and ready self-defense capability,” the U.S. Department of Defense said in a report submitted to Congress. “This sale will provide the ROK with the capability to defeat lower tier Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) threats, and will decrease the ROK`s reliance on the deployment of U.S. combat forces to maintain stability in the region."

Upon request of the Department of Defense, Congress will decide approval within 15 days. If Congress approves, the U.S. government will start writing a proposal and Letter of Agreement (LOA). The contract will take effect when the Korean government signs on the document delivered from the U.S. The estimated cost is 1.4 billion U.S. dollars (approximately 1.566 trillion won) and the principal contractors will be Raytheon Corporation and Lockheed Martin Missiles.