K-Defense Big Four Head to Saudi Arabia, Targeting 40 Trillion Won Middle East Market

[Financial News] South Korea’s K-Defense Industry, which is expanding its presence in the global defense market, is taking aim at the Middle East with Saudi Arabia as its launchpad. The country’s four major defense companies will line up their flagship models at the defense exhibition. Given that the Middle East defense market is worth about 40 trillion won a year, some observers say contracts worth trillions of won could be within reach, and company chiefs plan to be on the ground to personally oversee negotiations.
According to the defense industry on the 8th, South Korea’s big four defense firms will take part in the World Defense Show (WDS) 2026, an international defense exhibition held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from the 8th to the 12th. Specifically, Hanwha (Hanwha Aerospace, Hanwha Systems, and Hanwha Ocean), Hyundai Rotem, LIG Nex1, and Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) will participate.
Hanwha’s three defense affiliates will jointly set up the largest exhibition booth in their history. They will unveil advanced weapon systems for the first time, including the L-PGW, a loitering precision-guided munition that incorporates artificial intelligence (AI) technology. The company will also showcase the K9A1 Thunder self-propelled howitzer customized for export to Saudi Arabia, as well as the Tigon wheeled armored vehicle optimized for desert terrain.
Hyundai Rotem will organize its pavilion around three themes: AI, unmanned systems, and hydrogen. It will display a mock-up of the K2 main battle tank, along with four additional mock-ups of multi-purpose unmanned vehicles equipped with various mission payloads.
LIG Nex1 will present a multilayer air-defense integrated solution featuring systems such as Cheongung II, as well as airborne weapons including short-range air-to-air missiles, and unmanned systems such as Haegum and G-SWORD. The company is also expected to discuss cooperation with local militaries and defense firms in areas such as technology transfer, production, and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO).
KAI will put the next-generation Korean fighter, the KAI KF-21 Boramae, at the forefront of its display. It will introduce the KF-21, the MUCCA unmanned combat aircraft and SUCA multi-purpose UAV, the FA-50 light combat aircraft, the LAH light armed helicopter, and the MAH marine attack helicopter.
In recent years, defense exhibitions have evolved from venues for expressing simple interest into platforms where companies secure preferred bidder status, leading to active signing of memorandums of understanding (MOUs). As this event is aligned with Saudi Arabia’s "Vision 2030" initiative, the industry cautiously anticipates that contracts worth several trillion won could be signed. In fact, at WDS 2024, Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) and the Saudi Ministry of Defense signed a mid- to long-term defense cooperation MOU and then publicly disclosed the roughly 4 trillion won export contract for the Cheongung II system that had been concluded the previous year.
Chae Woon-saem, an analyst at Hana Securities, said, "Korean companies have previously achieved tangible results such as contracts and cooperation agreements at past WDS events, so expectations for new orders are resurfacing."
Meanwhile, Son Jae-il, CEO of Hanwha Aerospace, and Shin Ik-hyun, CEO of LIG Nex1, are expected to visit the venue in person to gauge global trends and directly oversee activities on the ground.
hoya0222@fnnews.com Kim Dong-ho Reporter