Photo : YONHAP News
Iraq is likely to sign a contract next week to purchase South Korea’s Cheongung-II medium-range surface-to-air missile system.
According to Defense Arabic, a defense news portal for the Middle East, Thursday, the Iraqi defense ministry plans to buy eight of the missile defense systems for two-point-five billion dollars, or three-point-four trillion won, and the contract will be signed next week.
Iraqi Defense Minister Thabet Al-Abbasi reportedly decided on the purchase, saying it will strengthen the country’s air defense system.
Sources in the defense industry say the Iraqi minister met with officials from LIG Nex1, the producer of the Cheongung-II system, during a visit to South Korea in March.
If the deal is realized, Iraq will be the third country to sign a deal worth trillions of won to purchase the system, after the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.