South Korea’s military plans to widen the defense area of the Korea Air and Missile Defense(KAMD) system and boost its interception capabilities amid increasing North Korean threats. 

The Defense Ministry announced on Wednesday that such goals are part of its 2020-2024 national defense mid-term plan.  

Starting from next year, the military will begin devising conceptual designs for multipurpose cargo ships that can load F-35B stealth fighter aircraft. It will also begin developing electromagnetic pulse bombs to disable North Korea’s electrical grid in the event of contingency. Additionally, it will introduce SM-3 ship-to-air missiles that will be loaded on Aegis destroyers. 

A total of 290-point-five trillion won will go toward executing the five-year plan. That’s roughly 58 trillion won annually. As a result, between 2020 and 2024, the nation’s defense budget is likely to exceed 50 trillion won, or higher than the 46-point-six trillion won earmarked for this year.