S. Korea, Indonesia agree on sharing military supplies

South Korea and Indonesia on Wednesday reached an agreement on sharing military supplies in peacekeeping and rescue operations, the defense ministry here said Wednesday.

In Jakarta, South Korean Army Maj. Gen. Jeon Dong-woon, head of the defense ministry's logistics management bureau, and Indonesian Army Maj. Gen. Hari Krisnomo, the deputy chief of staff for logistics for the Indonesian Army, signed the memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the bilateral cooperation.

Under the agreement, the two countries will share military supplies as necessary during their joint exercises, U.N. peacekeeping operations, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, the ministry explained.

"The need for inter-state support and cooperation in military logistics is increasing amid the growing activities of U.N. peacekeepers and frequent natural disasters," the ministry said in a statement. "We expect this MOU with Indonesia will help increase logistics cooperation between the two countries and also make a major contribution to world peace and humanitarian assistance."

South Korea and Indonesia have been seeking to bolster their defense and defense industrial cooperation. In May this year, the South's state-run Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) agreed to export the T-50 Golden Eagle supersonic trainer jets to Indonesia.

In July, Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering, a South Korean company, was picked among the final candidates to negotiate the exporting of submarines to Jakarta. The Indonesian project to acquire three submarines is said to be worth about US$1 billion.

President Lee Myung-bak met with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono last month on the sidelines of annual regional summits, and they agreed to further strengthen their cooperation.

Yonhap News