Russia to Offset Debts to SKorea by Transferring Weapons Technology

Korean Information Service, South Korea will receive advanced weapon technology from Russia as part of Moscow’s repayment of its debts to Seoul, defense officials here said Friday (Dec. 21). 
 
Russia still owes $1.3 billion from the time the former Soviet Union borrowed bilions of dollars from Korea ahead of the normalization of relations in 1990 between the two former Cold War foes. 
 
The former Soviet Union sided with its communist ally North Korea in the three-year Korean War launched by the North in 1950. However, former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev introduced reforms and openness in the late 1980s, paving the way for Moscow’s normalization of ties with South Korea and other Western countries. 
 
“We signed a memorandum of understanding with Russia on the method of repaying the debts,” a spokesman at the Defense Acquisition Program Administration said. 
 
The deal resulted from three years of negotiations after South Korea proposed the technology transfer at its summit with Russia in 2004. 
 
If the agreement is confirmed, South Korea will likely receive technology on submarine batteries, aircraft engines, and cutting-edge radar, according to the official. 
 
Russia provided South Korea with tanks, armored vehicles, helicopters, naval vessels, and other weapons to repay its debts under the so-called Bulgom (brown bear) project.