Pd20171110 영문보고서4 무기거래와 방산비리(시민평화포럼)

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Corruption in the Defense Industry from the Arms Trade and the Response of Civil Society

October 2017 HANUI / Research & Planning Dept. Manager, PEACEMOMO

In his opening speech for the Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition (“ADEX”) on October 17, 2017, President Moon Jae-in stated, “we need to quickly adopt advanced, highperformance weapons systems that we can protect ourself from the security threats of North Korea,” and emphasized that his administration will lead a “Responsible National Defense.” He added that the Korean defense industry must become more sophisticated, export-driven, and focused on becoming globally competitive, in harmony with the 4th Industrial Revolution. The Moon Administration is not the only one to emphasize growth of the defense industry. The Lee Myung-bak Administration declared that Korea will “sell customized weapons to areas of dispute and become the 7th largest exporter of weapons in the world by 2020,” and the Park Geun-hye Administration claimed that it would make the defense industry a core segment of its Creative Economy plans. While the Korean government has been declaring that it will promote the defense industry, it continues to remain silent about the fact that Korean weapons were: exported to Bahrain and Turkey and used to kill and injure many people; exported to countries in conflict, such as Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Israel; and used to violate human rights. As Korea’s administrations continue to support the defense industry, and the corruption scandals continue to occur, the government claims that it is strongly committed to stemming off corruption in the defense industry. However, this has been terribly slow, and without verifiable results. For whom is the Korean government promoting its so-called advanced, export-driven, global defense industry, and towards peace for whom? In this article, I would like to point out the “truth of the arms trade,” of the many problems of the Korean defense industry, and why the arms trade is related to corruption. I would also like to introduce how Korean civil society is reacting to these situations, and what further actions are necessary.

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