On Monday, South Korea announced that it would significantly increase its military budget. Over the next five years, the nation will spend an additional $8 billion on defense systems.
The decision comes at a time when North Korea remains an uncertain danger. Reportedly, the North Korean military has made technological advancements in the field of nuclear weapons that can minimize the size of the nuclear warheads. As a precaution, South Korea has opted for missile defense systems that have the potential of fending off a North Korean missile attack.
Of the $8 billion, about $5.5 billion will be used to build a preemptive defense system called Kill Chain. The system utilizes satellite technology to attack targets with unmanned Global Hawk planes and Taurus missiles. The rest of the budget, about $2.5 billion, will be used to expand the Korean Air and Missile Defense (KAMD). KAMD utilizes radar to locate targets and fires surface-to-air missiles.
South Korea's new fiscal plan calls for a general increase in budget for the 2016-2020 period to a total of $218.8 billion, which is roughly 7 percent more than the previous budget. The Korea Times reports that South Korea will also set aside about $92 million to build a multi-layer protection system and create a mock training field. Further, South Korea plans to purchase a surveillance system including surveillance drones and radars in efforts to enhance security against their northern neighbor.
Besides the increase in defense systems, the South Korean military will also improve the conditions for their troops. These improvements include better living conditions inside barracks as well as wage increases for troops by more than twice their current monthly pay. In the past, the Korean military has been scrutinized and criticized for its practices with troops. Low wages as well as harassment on some military bases garnered international recognition in the past.
