The United States has approved the sale of F-35 fighter jets to South Korea, a contract worth $5.06 billion, amid tensions with North Korea, the State Department announced on Wednesday.
The contract, reported to Congress, calls for the sale to Seoul of up to 25 of the Lockheed Martin-built fighter jets, considered the most capable on the market and equipped with stealth capabilities.
The sale will “augment Korea’s operational aircraft inventory and enhance its air-to-air and air-to-ground self-defense capability,” according to a State Department statement. It will not change the military balance in the region, the State Department said.
South Korea has been using F-35s since 2018. The US only approves the sale of these aircraft to its closest partners: Turkey, for example, has been excluded from the F-35 programme after buying a missile defence system from Russia.
The sale comes at a time of tension with Pyongyang, which launched two more short-range ballistic missiles on Wednesday, and whose leader Kim Jong Un is in Russia for a summit with President Vladimir Putin.
Since the beginning of this year, North Korea has stepped up its banned weapons tests, the latest of which, on 30 August, also involved two short-range ballistic missiles.
The US and South Korea regularly conduct military manoeuvres, the most recent of which provoked Pyongyang’s ire in August.
Seoul and Washington say the manoeuvres are defensive in nature, aimed at strengthening cooperation between allies.
The US has recently strengthened ties with Japan and South Korea, with President Joe Biden hosting their leaders in August at Camp David.
US law requires the State Department to approve arms sales to third countries and to inform Congress.
