Daewoo K2

Description

Up until the early 1980’s, the South Korean armed forces were fielding an array of American supplied weaponry, from Korean War issued M1 Garand’s and Carbines, to the more advanced M16.

With supply and impending licensing issues, in 1972 the Korean government instructed that a new weapon system be developed that would allow them to move away from reliance on other nations in terms of defense.

To aid simplicity of design, the M16 was used as a basis for the K2’s development. Predominantly the action of the mechanism and its use of the NATO 5.56×45mm cartridge, although the early prototypes were designed around the 7.62×51mm NATO round.

After successful trials in 1982-83, in 1985 the K2 was officially adopted as the new service rifle of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces (ROK).

As per the M4, a carbine version of the K2 was also developed, although not until 2012. This weapon (known as the K2C) would predominantly be issued to special forces operators, however it swiftly moved into general issue throughout the ROK, especially to vehicle/armoured troops or command elements.