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| LIG Nex1 head of overseas business division Lee Hyeon-soo, front left, and Florentina Micu, president of ROMARM, front right, sign an MOU to enhance anti-aircraft cooperation at Romania's economy and industry ministry in Bucharest, Thursday. Courtesy of LIG Nex1 |
Korean arms manufacturers are seeking to expand weapons exports to East European countries following a mega defense deal signed with Poland last year, according to the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), Thursday.
In July of last year, Poland signed a basic contract to import about 20 trillion won ($15.8 billion) worth of Korean weapons, including 1,000 K-2 tanks and 640 K-9 self-propelled howitzers.
KCCI said that its Eastern European economic delegation achieved results by laying a new foundation to facilitate weapons shipments to Romania.
"Korea's defense industry is the result of joint efforts by the government and companies that have worked hard for self-defense amid difficult security conditions," Woo Tae-hee, vice chairman of KCCI, said. "KCCI plans to provide support for companies to help them foray into the global market."
Hanwha Aerospace and LIG Nex1, which are participating in KCCI's Eastern European economic delegation, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Romanian government and state-run defense company ROMARM on Feb. 6, promising to promote comprehensive defense industry cooperation.
Romania recently announced that it would increase its defense budget from 2 percent to 2.5 percent of its GDP following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. They hope to strengthen global cooperation in order to modernize their military equipment.
Hanwha Aerospace plans to establish a cooperative relationship with Romania in the fields of ground weapons and ammunition production, seeking to increase exports of cutting-edge weapons systems, such as the K-9 self-propelled howitzer, which has already been successfully exported to nine countries.
"The K-9 is the world's best self-propelled howitzer and is in operation in nine countries around the world, including Korea. Through cooperation with many NATO countries such as Poland, Norway, and Estonia, we are growing as a trusted partner of NATO. Through the MOU, we hope to contribute to both the increase of Romania's national defense and economic development," Son Jae-il, CEO of Hanwha Aerospace, said.
In addition, LIG Nex1 signed an MOU in the presence of the Minister of Economy and Industry of Romania. LIG Nex1 and Romania agreed Wednesday to cooperate in technology transfers and the local production and joint development of anti-aircraft missiles.
"This memorandum of understanding contains details of cooperation on technology transfers and local production, so we expect it will go beyond cooperation in the defense industry and serve as a foundation for economic cooperation between the two countries," Lee Hyeon-soo, head of LIG Nex1's overseas business division, said.
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