The arms industry is seeing a shift in power dynamics, with emerging weapons producers challenging the dominance of traditional arms sellers. North Korea, for example, is capitalizing on shifting geopolitics and the Russian invasion of Ukraine to sell its weapons. Kim Jong Un recently visited Russia to discuss selling a stash of North Korean weapons to the country, and Iran has already sold drones to Russia. Both North Korea and Iran are heavily targeted by international sanctions, so they have little to lose and much to gain by doing business with Russia. This creates a marketplace of pariahs for Russia to source arms from.
On the other hand, South Korea’s arms industry is thriving even without the conflict in Ukraine. In the five years leading up to 2022, South Korea rose to ninth place in a ranking of weapons-sellers. The country aspires to become the world’s fourth-largest arms exporter by 2027, and last year it sold arms worth $17 billion. A significant portion of these sales came from agreements with Poland, which sees itself as a front-line country in Europe’s defense against a revanchist Russia. The deal includes the sale of 1,000 K2 Black Panther tanks, with 180 delivered rapidly from South Korea’s own inventory and 820 to be made under license in Poland.
Overall, this article highlights the changing dynamics in the global arms industry. While the traditional arms sellers still dominate, emerging producers like North Korea and South Korea are making significant strides. The shifting geopolitics and conflicts around the world are creating opportunities for these emerging players to tap into new markets and establish themselves as key arms suppliers.
