Koo Bon-sang, Chairman of South Korea’s defense company LIG Nex1, has met with the head of the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), the driving force behind the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) space programs. He also visited DSMC International, a marketing and networking organization supporting global companies expanding into the Middle East. The visit aimed to strengthen business networking and shape strategies in the UAE, a country that is rapidly raising its profile in the global space sector.
According to DSMC International on the 24th, Chairman Koo recently visited the organization’s headquarters in Dubai, UAE, where he met with DSMC executives and UAE government officials to discuss broad-ranging cooperation in the aerospace sector.
One of the key figures at the meeting was Salem Humaid Al Marri, Director General of MBRSC. Al Marri is a prominent leader in UAE’s national space programs, with over 20 years of experience in the field. He served as a project manager in the development of the Earth observation satellites DubaiSat-1 and DubaiSat-2. At MBRSC, he has led major initiatives including the lunar rover “Rashid” and the Mars mission “Hope.” He is a member of the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) and was ranked 18th on Gulf Business magazine’s list of the most influential Arabs of the year.
DSMC International stated, “As a trusted partner in the region, we help foreign companies prioritize the UAE’s ‘Make it in the Emirates’ initiative. We are proud to support LIG Nex1’s efforts in contributing to the growth of the UAE’s aerospace and space ecosystem.”
The UAE is one of the key Middle Eastern markets LIG Nex1 has been actively targeting. In May last year, Chairman Koo joined South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on a state visit to the UAE and participated in a business roundtable hosted by UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. In February this year, he met again with President Al Nahyan at the IDEX 2025 defense exhibition in Abu Dhabi, where he led export promotion efforts. He introduced the long-range surface-to-air missile system “L-SAM” and presented a multi-layered defense solution branded as the “K-Air Defense Network.” His growing interest in the UAE space sector shows a continued commitment to the region beyond defense.
The UAE has emerged as a rising space power in a field once dominated by global superpowers. Following the establishment of MBRSC in 2009, the UAE launched a national space agency in 2014 to foster public–private collaboration. In 2022, the UAE Space Agency created a space fund worth $800 million to further drive innovation and research. That same year, the Mars probe “Hope” successfully entered orbit, making the UAE the fifth country—after the United States, Russia, Europe, and India—to reach Mars orbit.
