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A computer-generated image of an envisioned light aircraft carrier released by the Republic of Korea Navy, Nov. 8. Courtesy of ROK Navy

No budget earmarked for Moon's landmark project

By Kang Seung-woo

The South Korean Navy's ambitious plan to secure a light aircraft carrier seems to have washed ashore, as the funds for the project have been excluded from the defense budget for next year.

The CVX carrier project, initiated by the Moon Jae-in administration, is aimed at building a 3,000-ton-class vessel. Last December, the then-ruling Democratic Party of Korea passed a 7.2 billion won ($5.34 million) budget for the project despite protests from the then-opposition People Power Party (PPP), which questioned its necessity and costs.

However, since President Yoon Suk-yeol of the PPP took office in May, speculation has been mounting that the CVX program could be scrapped due to a shift in the priorities of the new administration.

Shin Jong-woo, a senior researcher at the Korea Defense and Security Forum, said the CVX project had virtually fallen through after taking a backseat to other more urgent security issues following the change in administration.

"The light aircraft carrier program has lost momentum, as urgent needs to swiftly replace the Air Force's aging fleet of F-4s and F-5s and counter North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats have come to the fore," Shin said.

"Given that the PPP lawmakers of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee strongly opposed the project last year, it has been foreseen that it will come to nothing."

As a matter of fact, the bidding for its basic design, slated originally for May, has been pushed back, further backing up Shin's claim.

The government's recent decision to purchase 20 additional F-35As is also in line with the Yoon administration's defense priorities.

In July, the Defense Project Promotion Committee endorsed a 3.94 trillion won plan to deploy the stealth jets as part of efforts to counter North Korea's nuclear and missile threats. The fighter jets are regarded as key assets to the Kill Chain pre-emptive strike platform, one part of the three-axis defense system to deter Pyongyang's nuclear and missile threats. The term for the three-axis system that also includes the Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation (KMPR) and the Korea Air and Missile Defense system (KAMD) was abandoned during Moon's tenure in line with Seoul's efforts for inter-Korean reconciliation, but Yoon has revived it.

Although the change in the defense priorities under the Yoon administration is believed to be the reason behind the scrapping of the CVX project, political reasons also seem to have played a role in its exclusion from the government's defense budget proposal of 57.1 trillion won.

The CVX program is seen as a landmark project for Moon, who sought to bolster the nation's defense beyond its shores in a region surrounded by major military powers such as China, Russia and Japan.

"I believe that political reasons have also affected the outcome as it was the Moon administration's focal project," Shin said.

"Thanks to its symbolic significance, the project was able to extend its lifespan despite the PPP's protests and lingering questions over its practicality."

Also, Shin said the CVX project might have faced an uncertain future even if Lee Jae-myung, the DPK's candidate in the March presidential election, had won.

"During the election campaign, neither the Yoon nor Lee camps mentioned the light aircraft carrier program in their pledges, raising conjectures that it might have been abandoned by whoever won," he said.

In response, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) dismissed such speculations, saying that its exclusion from the government's defense budget does not mean the end of the CVX project.

"We concur on the need to secure a light aircraft carrier as a future asset, but a review is underway about procuring or developing vertical take-off and landing aircraft and carrier-based aircraft," a DAPA official said. "If we make a decision on the issue, its future direction will be established."