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The UAE Ministry of Defense tweeted on Tuesday that it plans to acquire the missile known as the M-SAM. An official at South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) called the UAE announcement “positive”, but noted negotiations had not been finalized.
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“We still need to see how negotiations on the details will proceed,” said a DAPA official who did not want to be named, as quoted from Yonhap, Wednesday (11/17/2021).
The M-SAM system, dubbed the “Cheongung II,” is a core element of South Korea’s multi-layered anti-missile program. Cheongung, which means the way of heaven in Korean. Using “hit-to-kill” technology, the missile is designed to intercept incoming enemy missiles at altitudes below 40 kilometers.
“We have reached a very advanced stage in negotiations with the Korean side and are close to reaching a final agreement in this regard,” said Tariq Abdul Rahim Al Hosani, CEO of the Tawazun Economic Council, as quoted by the Korean Herald.
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The Middle Eastern country will be the first to purchase Korean surface-to-air missiles abroad, known as the Cheongung, which local reports there describe as one of the most advanced in the world that will improve the quality of the UAE’s missile defenses.
The Cheongung series, deployed in 2015 to hit targets flying as high as 15 kilometers down, complements Korea’s missile defenses, where Patriot missiles intercept threats flying as high as 20 kilometers, while the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system targets at least 40 kilometers high.
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