Ministry of National Defense Republic of Korea

Minister Lee Jong-sup hosts the first Joint Korean-Polish Committee (JKPC) on Cooperation in the Fields of Defense and Defense Industry

- Hosting of the first JKPC on Cooperation in the Fields of Defense and Defense Industry as well as co-attendance at a roll-out ceremony for the first FA-50GF fighter to be exported to Poland reconfirm both countries’ commitment to cooperation
- Polish minister participates in the 2023 Combined Joint Live-Fire Exercise organized by Defense Minister Lee

On June 7 (Wednesday), Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup met with Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Mariusz Błaszczak. They attended a roll-out ceremony* for the first FA-50GF fighter to be exported to Poland at a hangar of Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) in Sacheon. Minister Lee held the first Joint Korean-Polish Committee (JKPC) on Cooperation in the Fields of Defense and Defense Industry.
* KAI signed a contract on September 16, 2022 to export 48 FA-50 fighters (worth about USD 3 billion) to Poland.

This meeting of the two is four months after a Bilateral Defense Ministers’ Meeting held on February 23 in Poland. They confirmed the Polish government’s strong confidence* in introducing Korean weapon systems and their commitment to expanding bilateral defense and defense industry cooperation.
* Poland’s high-level officials including President Andrzej Duda attended the arrival event of the first batch of K9 howitzers and K2 tanks in Poland on December 5, 2022, and K9 and K2 demonstration firing in Poland on March 31, 2023. 

During this meeting, both officials signed an MOU on establishment of the “Joint Korean-Polish Committee (JKPC) on Cooperation in the Fields of Defense and Defense Industry,” a regular ministerial council agreed in the last meeting. Furthermore, Minister Lee hosted the first JKPC meeting, where they comprehensively discussed ways to develop bilateral defense and defense industry cooperation.

First of all, the two ministers greatly appreciated that a large-scale contract for defense industry exports is being smoothly implemented, since the first contract was signed last year, with the roll-out of the first FA-50GF fighter to be exported to Poland.

Minister Lee said that, based on the bilateral trust accumulated in defense industry cooperation, a more advanced partnership such as follow-up contracts and local production in Poland is being discussed. He requested his counterpart’s interest and support to ensure that conditions for long-term and mutually beneficial defense industry cooperation between Korea and Poland continue to be created.

They resolved to deepen partnership in defense in tandem with progress in defense industry cooperation.

To this end, they discussed several points that were agreed upon at the defense ministers’ meeting in February: mutual visits of soldiers from both countries operating the same weapon systems, the military exercise implementation plan, and weapon system operation education and training in Korea. They also pledged to gradually broaden the scope of cooperation going forward.

After the JKPC meeting, the Polish deputy prime minister and defense minister visited Seungjin Fire Training Field to observe the 2023 Combined Joint Live-Fire Exercise organized by Defense Minister Lee.

Poland officials physically witnessed Korean military weapon systems and operational capabilities of the military through this live-fire exercise. This will provide an opportunity for the two countries to expand their defense and defense industry cooperation across more diverse sectors.