KADEX and DX Korea to merge into single defense expo at Goyang KINTEX in September

South Korea's two competing ground forces defense exhibitions will merge into a single event, to be held at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, in September.

The Korea Army Association and the Korea Defense Industry MICE Association announced Friday they had reached a final agreement to hold KADEX and DX Korea as one unified exhibition. The combined show will run four days, from Sept. 16 to 19, at KINTEX's Hall 2. The official name of the merged exhibition has yet to be decided and will be confirmed through further consultations between the organizers.

The Korea Defense Industry Association, which oversees domestic defense industry promotion and export support, is also expected to join as a co-organizer. The addition is expected to strengthen the event's standing as a national-level defense exhibition representing government, the military and industry.

The two organizations had previously entered merger negotiations at the recommendation of the Ministry of National Defense, but talks broke down on May 19 over differences in position. After additional rounds of consultation, the two sides reached a final agreement, finding common ground on the need to prioritize the interests of participating companies and the broader environment for Korean defense exports.

A key factor this year was the inefficiency that a split exhibition could create at a time when global demand for Korean defense products is running high. The two organizations concluded that holding parallel or overlapping ground forces defense shows would increase costs for participating companies and dilute their collective capacity to invite overseas buyers and delegations, ultimately harming export opportunities.

In a joint statement, the organizing committees of both bodies said the merger was "a shared decision for the advancement of South Korea's defense industry and the strengthening of defense companies' competitiveness." They added that they would develop the unified exhibition into "a core platform driving the expansion of Korean defense exports and the building of a global network."

The statement also said the split format had caused confusion among participating companies and overseas organizations, but that the merger would consolidate the strengths of South Korea's defense exhibitions to sharpen their global competitiveness. The organizers said they would build the event into "a national-representative defense exhibition that governments, the military, industry and overseas buyers can all trust."

Korea Army Association President Eom Gi-hak said the merger was "a magnanimous decision to protect the golden window for Korean defense exports and reduce the burden on companies." He added that he would ensure the domestic defense exhibition could "unite as one force and effectively showcase the competitiveness of South Korea's defense industry on the international stage."