Dr. Ranjit Kumar Dhawan, Associate Fellow, Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA), spoke on “India – South Korea Cooperation in Arms Production and Shipbuilding” at the Monday Morning Meeting held on 04 May 2026.  The Session was moderated by Dr. Shayesta Nishat Ahmed, Research Analyst, MP-IDSA. The scholars of the Institute attended the meeting.

Executive Summary

The Session aimed to contextualise and analyse evolving relations between India and South Korea through the lens of defence production and shipbuilding cooperation. Both of these sectors have emerged as significant pillars of partnership between the two countries, signalling the convergence of a growing desire for self-reliance in the field of manufacturing industry and strengthening ties in arms cooperation. Tracing the historical roots of South Korea’s defence industry and keeping in mind the shifting geopolitical landscape, Dr. Dhawan provided a comprehensive understanding of the deepening relations between the two nations. The Session underscored how growing ventures between India and South Korea signalled not only broadening engagement but also the growing manufacturing capabilities of both countries.

Detailed Report

The meeting started with Opening Remarks by the Moderator, Dr. Shayesta Nishat Ahmed, who began by emphasising the timeliness of the topic on account of strengthening relations between India and South Korea, as seen by the signing of the Joint Strategic Vision of 2026-2030 during the recent visit of the South Korean President Lee Jae Myung. She also pointed out that the convergence of India’s Act East Policy and South Korea’s New Southern Policy at the strategic level, shows the shift from a purely economic engagement to an Indo-Pacific security partnership exemplified by the 2+2 dialogue, defence industry agreements, and multiple maritime collaborations.

Dr. Dhawan began by outlining the scope of the presentation and introducing the topic. According to the Speaker, South Korea represents a “rags-to-riches story”, especially with regard to its manufacturing industry. He credited the Chaebols (family-owned South Korean companies) such as Hyundai, Samsung, LG, etc., and their participation in defence manufacturing as a key turning point in South Korea’s success.

While highlighting the rise of South Korean “soft power” through the global popularity of K-pop and K-dramas (known as the Hallyu), he stressed the increasing assertion of South Korea in the sphere of “hard power”. With regard to arms manufacturing, this has been underscored by multiple factors, including South Korea’s emergence as the second-largest exporter of defence equipment to North Atlantic Treaty Organisation countries between 2021 and 2025. The Speaker also mentioned the rapid pace of arms exports from South Korea, rising from US$ 3 billion in 2017 to US$ 17 billion in 2022, a five-fold increase in five years. Such rapid development is not limited to arms exports alone and can be seen in the shipbuilding sphere, with South Korea emerging as the second-largest shipbuilder in the world. This includes a multitude of vessels, including container ships and LNG carriers.

Delving into the historic background of South Korea’s meteoric rise to an economic power status, the Speaker began by tracing the civil war that erupted in 1950 between North and South Korea and its escalation into an international conflict. Despite this setback, South Korea was able to rise to the status of an “Asian Tiger Economy” in a short amount of time. This, according to Dr. Dhawan, was made possible due to a state-led economic development model. He further pointed to the interconnectedness of Asian economies and highlighted how this developmental and industrial model initially originated in Japan before diffusing across the region. Termed as the “Flying Geese model”, this model allowed for the movement of industries from developed economies to developing economies through the regional division of labour. Additionally, the rise of South Korea’s manufacturing sector hinged upon the following two factors: land reforms and the implementation of universal education. The former was a crucial factor, especially as South Korea differed from its neighbours, who followed a communist form of governance. In comparison, South Korea took the route of compensated land reforms, with the compensation to the former landlords eventually facilitating the rise of an entrepreneurial class, which led to the industrial development in the country. Educational reforms were undertaken to build a highly disciplined and skilled workforce.

Both land and educational reforms played a significant role in the economic development in the 1960s under the military general (and President) Park Chung-Hee, who implemented an export-led economic development model. Beginning with a labour-intensive and later moving to a capital-intensive industrialisation strategy, South Korea was able to develop at a rapid pace. A major impetus was also provided by the United States’ threat to withdraw military support to South Korea, giving a fillip to South Korea’s arms industry. The economic development that followed went hand in hand with the rise of defence industries, a process that was helped by the participation of the Chaebols. Since then, South Korea’s defence production has undergone rapid evolution and includes in its midst the development of the Light Combat Aircraft FA-50 Fighting Eagle, which has been bought by several countries, the K2 Hyundai Rotem Main Battle Tank, LIG Nex1-missile interceptors, Daewoo submarines, etc. The K9 Vajra Howitzers, produced through the transfer of technology from South Korea, remain of particular interest to India as it has inducted 100 units into its armed forces and has recently contracted to produce 100 more units.

In his concluding remarks, Dr. Dhawan reflected that the timing of India-South Korea collaboration seems ripe, especially taking into account the fact that India faces a severe shortage of cargo ships, with just 20 percent of natural gas imports carried on Indian-owned vessels. Against this backdrop, India’s Amrit Kaal Vision 2047 aims to expand the country’s maritime fleet through investments valued at US$ 24 billion. He further emphasised South Korea’s importance within India’s Act East Policy framework. Dr. Dhawan also stressed that this partnership is far from a one-sided engagement, as South Korea is also actively seeking deeper ties with India. He argued that cooperation need not remain limited to defence equipment alone, and gave the examples of nuclear-powered submarines, sixth-generation fighter aircraft, and jet propulsion systems as future areas of collaboration.

Comments and Questions

The presentation was followed by Questions and Comments from the Scholars. One query pertained to the bottlenecks that may appear in the Chips-to-Ships model of the Chaebols in the future, and why South Korea, unlike India, had a comparatively higher R&D investment. In an integrated response, Dr. Dhawan underlined South Korea’s early role as an imitator of technology rather than an innovator and how an attempt to rectify this has led to South Korea’s vast investment in R&D (almost 5% of its GDP). This shift, according to him, is primarily due to South Korea’s unique position, sandwiched between a technological giant, Japan, and a manufacturing giant, China. South Korea also faces increasing competition from new regional and global competitors.

Another question related to the heavy dependence of South Korea on the United States. and how the import of American technology creates an impediment to the usage of similar technology by India, which lacks the required level of authorisation. There were also concerns over the frequent collapse of India–South Korea defence deals, and a question was raised about China’s response to defence collaboration between New Delhi and Seoul. The Speaker affirmed the high dependence of South Korea in terms of its engagement with the US, but he emphasised South Korea’s push toward self-reliance. He similarly affirmed the failure of past deals between the two countries, giving the example of the POSCO steel project in Odisha, and defence initiatives like the Gangnam Corporation’s mine sweeper deal in Goa, but highlighted the recent resurgence in collaborative efforts as seen by the POSCO-Jindal Steel agreements, offering grounds for optimism. With regard to the China factor, the Speaker maintained that reports indicate that Beijing remains wary of the expanding defence cooperation between India and South Korea.

Another query, related to the recent Japan-India agreement on quantum technology sharing, and whether South Korea would be as willing to engage in similar high-technology transfers with India. Responding to the question, the Speaker emphasised that geo-economics cannot be separated from geopolitics. Hence, Tokyo’s precarious geopolitical positioning has made it more open to technological transfers, whereas South Korea remains relatively more cautious.

The Report has been prepared by Ms. Anveshi Bisht, Intern, East Asia Centre, MP-IDSA.