S. Korea ranks 5th in U.S. arms procurement in 2008: report

By Hwang Doo-hyong
WASHINGTON, Dec. 15 (Yonhap) -- South Korea was the fifth biggest buyer of U.S.
defense goods last year on a government-to-government basis, a recent report
shows.

South Korea bought US$800 million worth of U.S. arms on a foreign military sales
(FMS) basis in 2008, according to the report by the Congressional Research
Service.
The U.S. Congress passed legislation in September to grant South Korea the most
preferential treatment in FMS.
The legislation provides South Korea with the same status as members of the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Japan, Australia and New Zealand regarding
FMS -- that is, Congress is required to review proposed arms sales worth over
US$25 million to South Korea within 15 days.
Before the legislation, the U.S. government had to get permission from Congress
for the sale of defense goods worth over $14 million within 30 days.
The biggest buyer was Saudi Arabia with slightly over $1.2 billion, followed by
Israel at $1.2 billion, Egypt at $1 billion and Australia at $900 million.
Iraq came sixth at $800 million, Poland seventh at $760 million, Taiwan eighth at
$600 million, Britain ninth at $430 million and Japan tenth at $400 million.
hdh@yna.co.kr