South Korea, Poland agree to hold joint drills, boost arms cooperation

Seoul, Feb 24 (EFE).- The defense ministers of South Korea and Poland agreed to start a ministerial dialogue on cooperation in the arms industry and joint military exercises, the South Korean defense ministry said Friday.

The meeting on Thursday between Lee Jong-sup and Mariusz Blaszczak was aimed at deepening cooperation based on agreements signed in 2022 between both countries for Seoul to supply tanks, howitzers and fighter jets to Warsaw, local news agency Yonhap reported.

The two countries agreed to form an advisory body to manage defense and arms industry cooperation, the ministry said.

Seoul and Warsaw also agreed to conduct joint military exercises in order to share their respective experiences in operating weapons manufactured by South Korea and strengthen the interoperability between the two armies, according to the statement.

In 2022, both countries signed a deal for South Korea to supply K9 self-propelled howitzers, K2 battle tanks and FA-50 light combat aircraft to Poland.

Blaszczak said that Poland planned to continue purchasing South Korean weapons and stressed the need to establish strategic and long-term cooperation, the ministry said. EFE

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