South Korea's ministry of national defence has delayed launching its SAM-X surface-to-air missile programme until at least 2006 after the country's ministry of planning and budget slashed nearly all the funds requested for the project in 2005.
Lockheed Martin and Raytheon have long been negotiating a potential sale of Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) surface-to-air missile systems.
The defence ministry's proposed 2005 budget of 21.5 trillion won ($19.2 billion) has been cut to 20.8 trillion won, including 7.1 trillion won for modernisation projects.
Taiwan had also been expected to buy PAC-3s this year, but this appears set to slip into next year amid delayed approval for a special budget.
Source: Flight International