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S. Korea world's 3rd-largest arms importer: report
SEOUL, March 16 (Yonhap) -- South Korea was the world's third-largest arms importer in the five years from 2005, and the United States remained the biggest supplier of weapons, a leading Swedish peace research group said Tuesday.
A report released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) showed that China and India were the biggest arms buyers in 2005-2009, accounting for 9 percent and 7 percent, respectively.
South Korea and the United Arab Emirates were tied for third, each accounting for 6 percent.
South Korea was also the largest customer for American weapons, with 14 percent of U.S. arms exports bound for the Asian nation during the period. Other big buyers of U.S.-made weapons were Israel and the UAE, the study found.
South Korea faces a nuclear-armed North Korea across the world's most heavily fortified border. The two sides are still technically at war as the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. North Korea ratchets up tensions from time to time with military provocations and threats.
According to the report, the United States accounted for 30 percent of global arms exports, followed by Russia with 23 percent, Germany with 11 percent and France with 8 percent.
U.S.-produced weapons accounted for 66 percent of arms imported by South Korea, while German and French weapons accounted for 20 and 10 percent, respectively, the report said.
The total volume in conventional weapons trade rose 22 percent in 2005-2009 compared to the previous five-year period, with China and India being the biggest importers of these weapons, the report showed.
Combat aircraft accounted for 27 percent of the total volume of trade in conventional arms during the period, with the United States selling 72 F-16 jets to the UAE and 40 F-15 jets to South Korea during the period, the report said.
Referring to fighter jets, the group noted that orders and deliveries of these "potentially destabilizing" weapon systems have led to arms race concerns in the Middle East, North Africa, South America, South Asia and Southeast Asia.
SIPRI, established in 1966, is an independent international institute dedicated to research on conflict, armament, arms control and disarmament.
The institute's data on global arms transfer is a fully searchable on-line database containing information on all international transfers of seven categories of major conventional weapons from 1950 to the most recent full calendar year.
hayney@yna.co.kr
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