Finnish Army commander reviews Korean K-9 unit: official

The head of Finland's army toured a South Korean self-propelled artillery unit as the Scandinavian country is considering adopting the K-9 self-propelled howitzers for its armed forces, a military official here said Sunday.

According to the source who declined to be identified, Lieutenant General Seppo Toivonen visited an Army unit that uses the K-9 Thunder on Sept. 10.

"The general specifically checked how South Korea employs the artillery system in its units," the official said.

The Finnish officer was in the country and took part in the Defense Expo Korea 2016 that was held for four days at the KINTEX exhibition hall in Goyang, northwest of Seoul, from Sept. 7.

Toivonen's trip coincides with moves by the Finnish Defense Forces to adopt a new artillery system to enhance its fighting capability.

Helsinki is in the process of replacing its aging artillery pieces with new weapons from 2020 through 2030, with the South Korean K-9 being one of the contenders.

"The K-9 has received high marks in past evaluations because of its high degree of mobility even in South Korea's mountainous terrain and its proven capabilities in combat," a defense ministry official said.

Seoul fielded the K-9 from 2000 onwards to augment its older K-55 systems. The tracked self-propelled artillery, with a top speed of 67 kilometers per hour, can hit targets over 40 kilometers away with extended-range shells and fire upwards of six rounds in one minute. The K-9 has also engaged numerous North Korean targets in the past after the reclusive country attacked South Korea.

Hanwha Techwin Co., the producer of the K-9, secured export orders from Turkey and Poland with industry insiders predicting possible headway with India as well. There have been reports that Denmark and Norway may be examining the K-9 for their own armies too.

Besides the Finnish general, local arms manufacturers said that many foreign military leaders showed considerable interest in South Korean made arms.

Military brass from Morocco visited the land systems arm of Kia Motors Corp. in Gwangju, while Nepal's army chief of staff showed considerable interest when he toured a local small arms manufacturer.

"Some eight Army heads and other top brass were present at DX Korea that led to some 150 sales-related talks being held," a local company executive, who wanted to remain anonymous, said.

A total of 157 local weapons manufacturers took part in the exhibition along with 32 foreign companies, with 126,000 visiting the venue, organizers said. (Yonhap)