As deliberations on next year's budget bill begin, attention is focusing on whether funding for the K1E1 tank performance upgrade program will be revived. The budget was not included in the government proposal under the Ministry of Economy and Finance's priority on advanced capabilities, but the National Defense Committee cited concerns over a capability gap and voted again to approve the upgrade program's funding, raising the possibility of revival. More than half of the K1E1 tanks are not operating normally due to issues such as their sights. Inside and outside the military, the view is that if the upgrade program does not proceed, it will affect future exports of the K1 tank.
According to the military and the defense industry on the 18th, the National Defense Committee approved the K1E1 tank budget at the Budget and Accounts Subcommittee on the 12th. The military had planned to overhaul the K1E1 tanks and improve some capabilities to upgrade them to the K1E2, but the plan was excluded from next year's government budget bill finalized by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The performance upgrade program aims to spend about 1.2 trillion won to replace the gunner's sight, air-conditioning units, and overpressure systems on roughly 1,020 K1E1 tanks from next year through the late 2030s.
The military says the K1E1's sight is old and needs an upgrade. The sight is a subsystem introduced in the 1990s when the K1 tank was being fielded in earnest. Even though parts such as the thermal detector, cooler, and laser transmitter comprising the sight have developed faults, they are already discontinued and cannot be replaced.
As a result, about 1,020 of the K1 tanks operated by the military are experiencing problems such as poor image quality in the gunner's view or inaccurate detection and recognition of the surroundings. They reportedly cannot perform to standard even during the day. The K1 tank accounts for 58% of the military's tank fleet and is a core asset.
The lack of air-conditioning is also a problem. Given the characteristics of tanks, after one hour of operation in temperatures over 30 degrees, the interior exceeds 50 degrees. When a person's body temperature rises above 40 degrees, there are concerns about heatstroke and other issues. Because of this, the military trained with the tank's hatch open and a parasol placed on the turret.
Only about 200 K1 tanks are equipped with air-conditioning. A military official said, "The K1 tank is a more significant core asset for the military than the K2," and added, "If it cannot be operated normally, a capability gap will emerge."
Aware of this situation, the military in 2017 determined the requirement to upgrade the K1E1 tank's performance, conducted a feasibility study in 2019, and completed system development of the K1E2 tank with a new sight in March. In testing completed last year, it also received a determination of suitability for combat use.
The plan was to completely disassemble existing K1E1 tanks, replace parts, install upgrade equipment, and convert them into K1E2 tanks. The program was set to begin early next year.
The K1 tank upgrade program is also tied to defense exports. Many countries in Southeast Asia and Latin America that previously introduced Chinese or U.S. tanks are currently considering adopting Korea's K1 tank. In the tank market, the K2 is regarded as a high-performance premium model, while the K1E2 is seen as a mid- to low-priced, value-for-money model. Inside and outside the military, voices say that because many of the countries considering adoption have hot and humid climates, performance improvements are necessary to expand exports.
Both the ruling and opposition parties are speaking with one voice in criticizing the omission of K1-related funding. Yu Yong-weon of the People Power Party pointed out the omission of K1E1 funding and said, "You cannot overcome heat with a soldier's spirit." Jung Chung-rae, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, also highlighted during the October audit that the K9 self-propelled howitzer lacks air-conditioning, emphasizing the need to maintain troops' combat capability. Minister Ahn Gyu-baek of the Ministry of National Defense also said during the audit, "The National Assembly should work to pass the budget."
There were reportedly no objections to increasing the K1E1 budget at the National Defense Committee's budget subcommittee. Kang Dae-sik, the People Power Party's secretary on the committee, said, "Members from both sides judged it necessary to strengthen military capabilities, so it passed the National Defense Committee's budget subcommittee." The budget that passed the subcommittee was 500 million won, effectively the down payment to launch the K1E1 performance upgrade program.
Whether the K1E1 upgrade budget is reflected in next year's budget bill will be decided after deliberation by the Budget and Accounts Committee. A committee member, who requested anonymity, said, "Among budgets sent up from standing committees, items on which government ministers and lawmakers from both parties agree have a high chance of passing."