South Korean defence firm Hanwha Aerospace has won a contract to provide K9-based artilleries for the US Army, Yonhap News Agency reported on Wednesday, as Washington and Seoul also moved to shorten their annual joint military drills.
Hanwha's US unit, Hanwha Defense USA, was selected to provide prototypes based on the K9 platform for the Army's Mobile Tactical Cannon (MTC) programme.
The programme aims to develop a highly mobile 155-millimetre artillery system to replace the US Army's ageing M777 towed howitzers.
Under the contract, Hanwha will deliver six MTC prototypes, with an option for 12 additional systems. The contract has a cumulative value of up to $262.9 million, according to a US Army statement.
"Soldiers will use these platforms in a series of operational experiments to assess performance, reliability and supportability in realistic combat conditions," the statement said.
The contract marks the K9's first entry into the US defence market.
Hanwha Defense USA signed a three-year lease in April for an idle facility in Opelika, Alabama, as part of efforts to localise production in the US. The company also plans to invest in the US self-propelled howitzer supply chain.
The K9 is already in service or under contract in several countries, including NATO members Türkiye, Poland, Romania, Norway and Finland.
US, South Korea shorten military drills
Meanwhile, the annual Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises between South Korea and the US will end nearly a week earlier than planned after US President Donald Trump ordered the drills scaled back.
Trump said on Sunday that he had ordered the Pentagon to curtail the exercises, a day before they began, citing his relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, describing the drills as hostile, and seeking to avoid provocation.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Wednesday that the exercises would run from August 17 to 21, rather than ending on August 27 as originally planned.
North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency criticised the drills as a "most immediate and open threat" to the country and regional security, repeating Pyongyang's longstanding claim that the exercises are rehearsals for an invasion.
Seoul's presidential office said on Tuesday that the drills did not reflect "any intention to attack North Korea or escalate tensions on the Korean peninsula."
US alliance under scrutiny
Trump has said his relationship with Kim is making the situation "much safer." The two leaders met three times during Trump's first term, but have not held talks during his second term.
The US stations about 28,500 troops in South Korea as part of its defence commitment to Seoul, dating from the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty.
Trump's repeated criticism of longstanding US alliances has raised questions over Washington's security commitments in East Asia.
Japan's defence minister on Tuesday stressed the "critical" importance of security cooperation with the US and South Korea.
