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Cooperating to Build Joint Supply Chains for Drone and Counter-Drone Systems
The South Korean and U.S. defense ministries signed a memorandum of intent in Seoul on the 15th to deepen cooperation on drones, counter‑drone systems and joint market participation.
Jeon Jun‑beom, director of the Defense AI Planning Office at South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense, and Patrick Mason, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Army for Defense Exports and Cooperation, attended the signing.
Under the memorandum, the two governments will move to implement measures to build joint supply chains for drone and counter‑drone systems and to cooperate on standardization.
The Ministry of National Defense has allocated about 25 billion KRW (approximately $18.75 million) this year to a program to train 500,000 drone operators, with the goal of certifying service members as drone pilots.
Last September, Minister of National Defense An Gyu‑baek visited the Army’s 36th Division, designated as the country’s first unit focused on small‑drone and counter‑drone testing, and ordered the full‑scale rollout of the 500,000‑operator training effort.
Officials expect the memorandum with the U.S. Department of Defense to accelerate South Korea’s drive to build that cadre of drone operators.
First, the U.S. Department of Defense plans to prioritize listing South Korean products on a drone and counter‑drone online trading platform it aims to launch later this year as part of the joint supply‑chain effort.
The ministry said that enabling both countries to procure and operate South Korean systems should boost interoperability and reduce logistics costs.
The U.S. Department of Defense will also work with Seoul to standardize drone and counter‑drone systems for combined operations. In the near term, the partners will pursue common battery standards for small drones and coordinate ongoing information sharing and joint research to establish shared standards quickly.
Jeon Jun‑beom said he expects the memorandum to accelerate the development of common standards and a certification regime for drone and counter‑drone technologies.
Deputy Assistant Secretary Patrick Mason stressed that cooperation on drones, counter‑drone systems and market participation will help allies such as South Korea overcome acquisition barriers and rapidly field efficient, interoperable drone capabilities.
Following the signing, defense officials from both countries will form a working group to maintain close coordination.
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