“The first firing of the K9 gun-howitzers is a symbol of fast progress and Polish-Korean cooperation,” said Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense Mariusz Błaszczak after the military exercises watched with his South Korean counterpart Lee Jong-Sup. Błaszczak also announced the development of interoperability between Poland and South Korea.

Mariusz Błaszczak and Lee Jong-sup, Minister of Defense of South Korea, watched in Toruń a demonstration of combat training performed by soldiers of the artillery brigade, during which the K9 gun-howitzers were used for the first time.

At a later press conference, Błaszczak stressed that “this is a symbol of Polish-Korean cooperation and very fast progress in developing security and defense capabilities.”

“We are in the process of strengthening the defense capabilities of the Polish armed forces through cooperation with South Korea, but our plans also concern building interoperability between our armies,” added Polish MoD.

Speaking about further prospects for Polish-Korean military cooperation, he stated that “the joint plans concern the production of Korean equipment in Poland.”

After the meeting with the Korean minister, Błaszczak said that it was an opportunity to “summarize the cooperation so far and discuss plans for cooperation in the future.”

He added that this year the Polish Army will also receive South Korean FA-50 jet fighters, and Polish pilots are already undergoing training in South Korea.

Lee Jong-sup also assured that Korea and Poland would “continue to work closely together to strengthen the defense forces.” He added that a defense consortium will also be created for this purpose by companies from both countries in order to increase Poland’s defense potential, as well as allow Korea to develop cooperation with other countries in Europe.

South Korean MoD announced that both countries agreed to conduct joint military exercises and to strengthen technological cooperation.

“South Korea and Poland share common values, freedoms, and respect for human rights. We pursue a common goal. In the future, we will continue to cooperate closely on the basis of mutual trust,” Lee Jong-sup said.

In July last year, Poland’s Ministry of Defense purchased 672 K9 gun-howitzers along with technical vehicles and training and logistics packages, ammunition supplies, and technical support. Poland also ordered K2 tanks, FA-50 jet fighters combat trainers, and K239 Chunmoo artillery launchers from South Korea.