Are China’s integrated arms systems a match for South Korean rivals?

As Seoul prepares to snatch Beijing’s fourth-place ranking in global weapons sales, China is switching its focus to a high-value approach

Arms sales have been speeding up for both countries because of the war in Ukraine and regional tensions

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Deals totalling $40 billion were struck at this year’s Zhuhai air show, the organisers said. Photo: AP

Published: 8:00pm, 3 Dec 2022

This year’s Zhuhai air show – China’s premier arms and aviation trade fair – revealed a clear trend away from individual weapons sales towards integrated systems, a move which observers said would insulate its position against rising competitors like South Korea.

Deals worth a total of US$40 billion were struck at the China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai last month, organisers said. No breakdown was given between civilian aircraft sales and arms agreements.

Da Ivan, a military columnist in China, said the air show revealed a clear trend in Chinese military exports of “providing systematic solutions rather than individual weapons, which would be a comparative advantage to South Korea”.

Da pointed to Casic’s 12-device anti-drone system and Norinco’s “new-generation army brigade combat team” – able to equip 10 battalions of tank, anti-tank, infantry, artillery, air defence, drones, logistics and support operations – as examples on display at Zhuhai.

He also suggested there were opportunities for China to fill gaps in the market created by tensions between the US and Saudi Arabia, one of its main buyers, as well as Russia’s war in Ukraine which has hugely affected Russian exports.

South Korea is on track to surpass China in its share of international arms sales, with a government research institute in Seoul suggesting last month that it may already have done so.

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