S. Korean Deputy Minister of Defence: We Will Be Able to Adapt Polish Solutions

Eui-Seong Lee, vice-president of Hyundai Rotem, which is the manufacturer of the K2 tank, declared readiness for joint export action of the version that is to be created as K2PL.

The Deputy Minister said that the Korean government had decided to make certain solutions available. He mentioned that Poland would develop its own capabilities to obtain even more advanced equipment and that Korea would be able to adapt Polish solutions. Furthermore, he added that cooperation was not unidirectional but bilateral and that profits and benefits too should be bilateral.

Head of the Armament Agency, Brigadier general Artur Kuptel pointed out that although the equipment purchased in Korea would be primarily manufactured there, the contracts had been concluded with a view to what would take place in our country over the next decades. He pointed out that the executive agreements that fulfill the framework contracts are intended to establish production, service and modernization capacities.

Brigadier general Kuptel assured that the recent purchases were not prompted by the greediness of the armed forces, but they were the result of the need to build potential, which would deter a potential adversary.

The vice president of Hyundai Rotem, Eui-Seong Lee, stated that the company wants Polonization and that the Polish defence industry should have the capabilities to produce a main battle tank. He added that the K2PL program requires technology transfer and assured that Hyundai Rotem is doing everything to support the Polish industry.

Eui-Seong Lee said that the company's goal was to create the best tank possible. In his opinion they need to make sure that all components meet the requirements of the Polish army. The vice president of Hyundai Rotem stated that together, Poles and Koreans would create the K2PL as the best main battle tank in the world, and then we would be able to export it.

He expressed his readiness to work together on a new wheeled armored personnel carrier, under which the two countries would share intellectual rights.

The president of the WB Group, Piotr Wojciechowski, admitted that his company - even in cooperation with PGZ - were relatively small partners compared to their Korean counterpart. However, he also mentioned that the Polish side had technologies that could be a significant contribution.

Piotr Wojciechowski said that the Polish industry adapted their products to the most modern solutions, not only in Poland. He blieves that the most important thing is that they could also offer them on the Korean market. Finally, he pointed out that in October the company will promote its UAVs at an exhibition in South Korea.

According to the deputy head of the Korean Ministry of Defense, industrial cooperation with Poland is attractive to Korean companies due to Poland's location on NATO's eastern flank.

According to the vice president of Hyundai Rotem, cooperation is possible not only in defense industries, but also in industries such as transport, hydrogen energy and artificial intelligence, and the Korean company, which is one of the largest manufacturers of high-speed trains, can contribute to the construction of the CPK.