South Korea open to future defense co-development with Jakarta despite fighter jet setback - Asia & Pacific - The Jakarta Post

Asia & Pacific

A South Korean Air Force KF-21 fighter jet

performs during a media demonstration on Oct. 16, 2023, at the Seoul International Aerospace and Defense Exhibition (ADEX) in Seongnam, South Korea. (AFP/Anthony Wallace)

South Korea remains open to jointly developing future defense systems with Indonesia despite setbacks in the KF-21 Boramae fighter jet program, a Korean diplomat has said, describing the experience as an asset that strengthened mutual trust between the two countries.The remarks came on the back of a formal completion of the long-delayed KF-21 development phase in July, more than a decade after Indonesia joined the project as South Korea’s first foreign co-development partner in 2015.

“We’ve gone through some hiccups throughout this project. We all know that,” Uhm Taeho, counsellor and political section chief at the South Korean Embassy in Indonesia, said during a discussion in Central Jakarta on Aug. 26.