Iraq Builds Multilayered Air Defense Network with South Korean and Turkish Systems

Iraq is rebuilding its air defense system using a multilayered architecture approach, based on integrating systems from different countries to address a wide range of threats.

According to reports, Baghdad plans to purchase eight M-SAM-2 batteries or systems from South Korea, alongside drones and counter-drone systems produced by the Turkish defense industry. The move reflects a significant conceptual shift in Iraqi security policy, aimed at providing the country with more advanced airspace defense capabilities, for the first time at this scale since 2003.

At the center of the plan is the defense of the capital, Baghdad, against ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles, and low-flying aircraft. Iraq places particular importance on protecting sensitive areas, including fuel depots, diplomatic quarters, military facilities, as well as the cities of Erbil, Kirkuk, and Basra, and the western access routes into the country. For this purpose, South Korean systems are intended to serve as the upper layer of the defense network, while Turkish systems are meant to provide an effective response to cheaper, more numerous, and more mobile threats, especially low-flying drones.

The South Korean system Cheongung-2, also known as KM-SAM, is considered a medium-range interceptor missile system equipped with an AESA radar and an eight-cell launcher capable of carrying up to 32 missiles per battery. It is designed to intercept advanced threats with lower radar signatures, providing Iraq with a capability it has not previously possessed at a significant scale.

In contrast, the Turkish solution, from the ASELSAN KORKUT family, is specifically designed to counter large numbers of inexpensive, low-flying drones. The system includes a 25mm autocannon with a high rate of fire of 6,000 rounds per minute and a range of up to 1,200 meters, along with AESA radar, sensors, an electro-optical sight, a thermal camera, a laser rangefinder, and RF jamming capability against non-kinetic threats.

According to reports, the combination of these two deals from Seoul and Ankara reflects Baghdad’s ambition for a deep modernization of its defense network. Iraq emphasizes that this marks a shift toward an integrated, precise, multilayered approach designed to reduce the country’s vulnerability to diverse aerial threats and improve its ability to protect strategic assets and population centers.