South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-Soo, left, and his Polish host, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, right, attend a press conference following talks on regional security and the examination of the FA-50 fighter jets that Poland recently bought from South Korea, along with other military equipment, at an air base in Minsk Mazowiecki, eastern Poland, Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023. Han was in Poland for talks on regional security amid war in neighboring Ukraine, and also to discuss military and nuclear energy cooperation. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-Soo, left, and his Polish host, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, right, attend a press conference following talks on regional security and the examination of the FA-50 fighter jets that Poland recently bought from South Korea, along with other military equipment, at an air base in Minsk Mazowiecki, eastern Poland, Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023. Han was in Poland for talks on regional security amid war in neighboring Ukraine, and also to discuss military and nuclear energy cooperation. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
CSMINSK MAZOWIECKI, Poland (AP) — South Korea's prime minister was in Poland on Wednesday for talks on regional security amid the war in neighboring Ukraine, and also to discuss military and nuclear energy cooperation as his country continues to strengthen ties with Warsaw.
Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and his Polish counterpart, Mateusz Morawiecki, visited an air base in the town of Minsk Mazowiecki in eastern Poland, where they .
They discussed further cooperation on military weapons and equipment, as Poland also wants to help produce South Korean weapons. South Korea is also to take part in Poland's development of nuclear power.
“It can be said without doubt that Poland is a key economic partner for South Korea and a starting point for us to enter Central and Eastern Europe markets,†Han said after the talks.
He noted that both Poland and South Korea have experience rebuilding after a war and could cooperate in helping repair the damage in Ukraine.
“We are united in defending (our) civilization and peace,†Morawiecki agreed during a joint news conference with Han, referring to Russia’s almost 19 months of war on Ukraine.
Poland has given much military equipment to Ukraine to support its fight against Russia and is making intensive weapons purchases to upgrade its own deterrence and defense capabilities. Warsaw is also buying billions of dollars worth of armaments, mainly from the United States and South Korea.
“Today, Poland is facing a huge task of building one of the strongest armies in Europe," Morawiecki said. “We want to draw from the most advanced technologies. Our strategic partnership with Korea is leading us in that direction.â€
On top of the 48 jet fighters, Poland is in the process of buying some 670 of K9 Thunder self-propelled howitzers, some 1,000 K2 tanks and also K239 Chunmoo artillery systems.
than 4% of its gross domestic product on defense in 2024. It remains to be seen if these policies will be continued after the Oct. 15 parliamentary elections in which the ruling conservative party will seek an unprecedented third term.
Poland's nuclear energy program until 2043 envisages Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power company as a strategic partner in developing one of Poland's three planned nuclear power plants.
On Tuesday, Korea opened its borders to Poland's pork, and it is working on allowing imports of beef and poultry meat from Poland, Han said.
Later Wednesday, Han was to travel to the southern spa town of Krynica-Zdroj to meet Polish President Andrzej Duda and Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda and to attend a three-day regional economic forum. Polish-South Korean cooperation will be a key element of the forum's program, organizers say.
Bilateral economic trade between the countries was more than $10 billion .
Poland and South Korea share views on security in the face of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
The ºÃÉ«tv Press. All rights reserved.
“We should be the Taylor Swift of financial institutions.â€
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
