AI-generated summary
The U.S. Army initially contracted with Hanwha Defense USA for six prototype K9 wheeled self-propelled howitzers 'K9MH' through the Mobile Tactical Artillery (MTC) program, and with this additional order, the total number increased to nine units. After approximately four years of testing and operational experiments to evaluate performance and reliability, a decision will be made on mass production and deployment.
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Inside Defense, an American online media specializing in defense, reported on the 6th (local time) that the U.S. Army ordered three additional K9 wheeled self-propelled howitzers 'K9MH' from Hanwha Defense USA on the 24th of last month under the 'Mobile Tactical Cannon (MTC) program.
Hanwha Defense USA signed a contract with the U.S. Army for 6 K9MH prototypes last August, and signed an additional contract for 3 more units, increasing the total supply to 9 units.
The U.S. Army plans to produce and test K9MH prototypes and conduct operational experiments for soldiers for about four years.
We plan to determine whether to begin full-scale mass production and deployment after checking the results of evaluating performance, reliability, and maintenance and support capabilities under the assumption of an actual combat environment.
For more details, please watch the video.
Produced by: Lim Dong-geun and Shin Tae-hee
Video: Provided by Hanwha Group, Yonhap News TV, DVIDS, YouTube Hanwha Defense USA, Site Inside Defense
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The U.S. Army will decide whether to mass-produce it based on the results of K9MH prototype testing.
Likely · Within months
French defense startup Harmattan AI unveiled the autonomous attack drone 'Iripi', which flies up to 2,000 km and strikes targets behind the front lines. It flies with sensors and its own navigation system without a satellite navigation system, and is designed so that one commander can operate dozens of missions simultaneously.

Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) signed a contract with the Defense Acquisition Program Administration for the 114.5 billion won performance-based logistics support (PBL) project for the Marine Corps' amphibious helicopter MUH-1.

On the 8th, the Korean Veterans Association held a resolution meeting to condemn North Korea's DMZ landmine provocation at the COEX Magok Convention Center in Seoul, defining the DMZ landmine explosion that occurred on the 21st of last month as a serious armed provocation and urging North Korea to punish those responsible and make an immediate apology. More than 1,000 people attended the event, including the Minister of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, officials from the Veterans Affairs Association, veterans organizations, war veterans groups, diplomatic envoys from UN participating countries, and US military service members stationed in Korea, and the 74th Veterans Day commemoration ceremony was previously held.

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Jin Yong-sung stated he viewed the Sept. 21 mine blast near the inter-Korean border as a provocation by North Korea, despite the military's initial omission of the term in its announcement, and vowed to review further response measures while confirming the blast was caused by North Korean-planted mines.

Jin Young-seung, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in a government audit for the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the National Defense Committee on the 8th that there are no problems with South Korea's preparedness despite some restrictions on information sharing on North Korea by the United States, and expressed hope for a speedy resolution of the situation.

Following the explosion of a landmine planted by the North Korean military in the DMZ, the military announced that it will implement physical and non-physical response measures in the short term to deter further provocations by North Korea, and will strengthen its ability to secure leadership in DMZ operations, including real-time on-site visualization and minimizing surveillance blind spots, in the medium term. In addition, they reported strengthening forward border unit surveillance equipment, intensive operation of ISR assets, accelerating the conversion of the AI-based GOP border operation system, coordinating ROK-US joint training, and continuing efforts to meet the conditions for wartime operational control transfer.