ROM
Secret acquisition of Korean MANPAD systems. The Ministry of National Defense, led by pesedist Angel Tilvar, secretly bought 54 Chiron systems for more than $90 million from LIG Nex1, a company implicated in several corruption scandals in South Korea. The "Government to Government" contract was possible after Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu would have issued a secret government decision, although until then all such contracts had been public.
LIG Nex 1 has been embroiled in several corruption scandals over the past decade in South Korea. He benefited from the complicity of employees of the Defense Procurement Program Administration, officials who were later employed at partner firms. Others benefited from fancy meals and games of golf.
Ciucă and Ciolacu in South Korea
Two official delegations, one led by Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca, the other by Marcel Ciolacu, as Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, visited South Korea simultaneously at the end of last year. Following the joint official visit, Ciuca and Ciolacu promised their South Korean counterparts that they would purchase more types of weapons to equip the Romanian Army.
This is despite the trend at European level showing that military equipment is purchased from the European Union or from a NATO country. From Seoul, the two Romanian officials went to the demilitarized zone between South and North Korea to take a picture.
Later, to the Ministry of National Defense, came a letter from the Administration of Defense Acquisition Programs of South Korea.
MApN in South Korea
It was an invitation addressed to the General Directorate for Armaments, led by Major General Dr. Eng. Teodor Incicaș, to visit weapons factories in South Korea. General Teodor Incicaș was appointed head of the Directorate in 2020, when liberal Nicolae Ciuca held the position of Minister of Defense.
At DeFapt.ro's request, the Ministry of National Defense (MApN) said that "the delegation made up of specialists of the Ministry of National Defense paid a fact-finding visit to the Republic of Korea between 28.01.2023 and 02.02.2023."
Subsequently, in Bucharest, General Incicaș participated in several meetings with representatives of the defense industry in South Korea, events organized by the Embassy of South Korea in Bucharest.
Tender for MANPAD systems cancelled by MApN
The General Directorate for Armaments, a structure subordinated to the Ministry of National Defence, had at that time a restricted tender for the acquisition of portable anti-aircraft missile systems (MANPAD) worth about 680 million dollars. The only bid left in the race was the one submitted by the French company MBDA. On August 19, 2023, the General Directorate for Armaments announced that it had cancelled the tender.
MApN said at DeFapt.ro request that the restricted tender procedure was canceled because the French MBDA submitted an "unacceptable" and "non-compliant" bid with the provisions of the Methodology for evaluating the submitted applications/bids.
In addition, according to the same reply, "the technical proposal in the submitted tender is non-compliant according to the provisions of Art. 12 para. (2) letter b), of the Methodology for evaluating applications/tenders submitted in procurement procedures".
Army asks for offer of MANPAD from South Korea
General Teodor Incicaș decided in this context that the Directorate he leads will send requests for tenders to LIG Nex1 and Thales UK in order to purchase MANPAD systems quickly. The request to Thales UK was sent by the filler because they sell MANPAD systems with laser-guided missiles. But the French company MBDA also came on the line, sending an unsolicited offer.
On October 20, 2023, the Ministry of National Defense transmitted, at the request of DeFapt.ro, that "the General Directorate for Armaments is evaluating options for continuing the endowment program <Portable near-range/very short-range anti-aircraft missile system – MANPAD>, following the fact that the award procedure carried out during 2022-2023 was canceled."
Regarding the reasons for which the Ministry of National Defense considered the purchase of MANPAD systems from South Korea, the MApN Press Office said that, "given that the award procedure carried out during 2022-2023 was canceled, the Ministry of National Defense considers all options for carrying out the procurement <Close-range/very short-range anti-aircraft missile systems, portable – MANPAD>".
Procurement with government endorsement
A month later, according to sources within the Ministry of National Defence, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu issued a secret Government Decision by which he decided to buy MANPAD systems directly from South Korea through a "Government to Government" agreement. Basically, the Romanian Government buys directly from the South Korean government the MANPAD missile systems produced by the LIG Nex1 company. This is how the Offset Law was circumvented, in addition the Romanian authorities got rid of the unsolicited offer of the French from MBDA.
If MApN bought the MANPAD systems directly from LIG Nex1, the company was obliged by the Offset Law to invest around 30-40% of the contract value in the Romanian economy. And the Romanian economy needs major investments in the state defense industry.
Several sources from the Ministry of National Defence stated on condition of anonymity for DeFapt.ro that on Thursday, December 14, at around 10 am, at Romtehnica headquarters, the MApN company, the "G2G" contract for the acquisition of MANPAD systems was signed.
Secret acquisition of Korean MANPAD systems
"A government agreement was signed to buy 54 Chiron systems for which Romania will pay over 90 million dollars. The signing of the contract was attended by several consultants from the South Korean company.
The acquisition was signed by Nicolae Nasta, Nicolae Ciuca's trusted man, as head of Romtehnica," the quoted sources say.
DeFapt.ro asked the Ministry of National Defence to communicate the legal framework under which the 54 Chiron systems were purchased, on what date the GD was issued and why it was not made public. When DeFapt.ro receives the answers, it will publish them.
LIG Nex1, corruption scandals
The Chiron portable anti-aircraft missile system is produced by the company LIG Nex1, whose management has been involved in several corruption deals for the past ten years. The Korea Times reported in 2015 that the Defense Development Agency and LIG Nex1 are being investigated for alleged irregularities in the development of a portable anti-tank guided missile. Investigators investigating corruption in the defense industry raided the agency's and company's headquarters.
South Korea's government has banned LIG Nex1 from participating for three months in tenders organized by the government and public institutions for allegedly falsifying documents on the performance evaluation of a radar.
In another corruption case related to Cheongung missile production, Yonhap News Agency reported in 2018, three current and former Defense Acquisition Program Administration officials were found to have forced the signing of a contract that included more military equipment. If ordered separately, military equipment would have been $16.4 million cheaper.
One of the three officials was later hired as chief executive of a partner firm of LIG Nex1. Another official, in charge of cost analysis, was suspected of hiring his nephew and a brother-in-law at a partner firm of LIG Nex1.