SEOUL, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- The United States has turned down a bid from South Korea to buy "Global Hawk" spy drones.
Seoul wants to purchase the cutting-edge
, high-altitude "Global Hawk" unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) that cost $45 million each, but the Bush administration isn't playing ball, chosun
,com reported Thursday.
The unmanned spy plane is considered a key strategic weapon and is under strict export restrictions
, meaning that congressional approval is needed before the UAV can be sold to abroad. In June
, the U.S. approved the sale to Japan.
During a parliamentary audit of South Korea's Agency for Defense Development on Thursday
, Grand National Party lawmaker Hwang Jin-ha said Washington told Seoul during a joint Security Cooperation Committee meeting on June 21 the sale was "inappropriate at this time."
Ahn Dong-man, the president of the ADD, confirmed the news. "I am aware that the United States has refused to sell us Global Hawks
," he said.
Washington is said to be unconvinced that Korea needs the Global Hawks and unwilling to sell the technology to the country. It also worries about the risk of key strategic technology being leaked.
