South Korean Artillery Cements Dominance in Europe as Croatia Signs Largest Ever Defence Order

South Korea has continued to cement its position as the leading supplier of artillery and rocket artillery systems to European armed forces, with Croatia now preparing to become the latest customer after having approved the purchase 18 K239 Chunmoo multiple rocket launchers. The deal valued at €435.2 million ($506 million) is one of the largest signed in the Eastern European state’s history, and will replace its Cold War era Grad and Vulkan launchers. Poland has already ordered hundreds of Chunmoo systems , while Estonia has ordered nine launchers and Norway signed a major agreement in January for 16 systems and associated ammunition. 

The Chunmoo’s success is part of a much broader Korean breakthrough in European artillery markets. Hanwha Aerospace’s K9 Thunder 155mm self-propelled howitzer has already become one of the most widely adopted modern artillery systems in Europe, with Poland, Finland, Norway, Estonia, Romania, Spain and Turkey among its NATO operators or customers. Finland’s latest procurement of 112 additional K9s is expected to bring its total inventory to more than 200 systems, making it the second-largest European K9 operator after Poland. 

The rise of the Chunmoo is arguably even more consequential than the K9’s success because rocket artillery has become increasingly important as European armies reconsider their requirements following the war in Ukraine. The conflict has demonstrated the importance of massed fires, precision-guided munitions, deep-strike capabilities and the ability to rapidly relocate artillery units after firing. Chunmoo combines several different classes of ammunition in a single launcher, allowing it to fulfil both conventional multiple-launch rocket artillery and longer-range precision-strike roles. The South Korean system is a leading rival to the U.S. HIMARS in gaining European orders. 

South Korea’s late production capacity allows European armies to replenish artillery stocks after large scale donations to Ukraine, with the enormous quantities of artillery ammunition consumed in Ukraine having exposed very limited capacities of Western defence industries. Korean supplies have been key to allowing European states to replace equipment being delivered to the Ukrainian Army, and to allow for accelerated additional deliveries. Korean systems are generally not only able to be delivered faster, but are also in many respects significantly more capable than their Western-produced counterparts, reflecting both the country’s more robust technological and industrial bases and its greater prioritisation of artillery capabilities.