Poland and the Republic of Korea (ROK) are upgrading their bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership to advance defense industry cooperation.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and ROK President Lee Jae-myung announced the arrangement after meeting in Seoul in mid-April 2026. Lee said he hoped to increase “mutually beneficial” defense industry ties, the Yonhap News Agency reported, and Tusk described the ROK as Poland’s “most important ally after the United States, especially in the defense industry.”
The ROK is a treaty ally of the U.S., as is Poland through its NATO membership. The ROK’s defense and security ties with NATO have surged since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022. Seoul is part of the 32-member security alliance’s Indo-Pacific Four forum with Australia, Japan and New Zealand, and has become a strategic defense supplier through exports, joint development and technology sharing.
For instance, ROK defense manufacturer Hanwha Aerospace Co. will supply 112 K9 howitzers to Finland, which joined NATO in 2023, in a $634 million agreement announced in early April 2026. The deal is expected to spur additional ROK arms exports, Yonhap reported. The howitzers are operated by more than 10 countries, including six NATO members.
Warsaw is one of the ROK’s top defense customers. Poland signed a $44.2 billion framework agreement in 2022 to purchase K2 tanks, K9 howitzers, FA-50 light attack aircraft and Chunmoo multiple rocket launch systems. The armaments, “bearing South Korea’s technology and pride, are now safeguarding Poland’s territory and its people across its vast lands,” Lee said.
Poland also signed a $4 billion contract with Hanwha Aerospace in late 2025 to acquire additional Chunmoo batteries. The sales bring the ROK’s expertise and technology to a broader region for collective security, while also benefiting Seoul’s economy.
The ROK’s share of global arms exports grew to 6% in 2025, the highest level on record and up from 3.6% the previous year, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, the Hankyoreh newspaper reported. That makes the ROK the fourth-largest arms exporter behind the U.S., France and Israel.
Lee said he wants to expand bilateral cooperation into other sectors, noting that Poland has become one of the ROK’s top five trading partners among European Union members. Seoul also is the largest non-European investor in Poland.
“We agreed to further broaden the scope of our bilateral cooperation to cover a wider range of areas, including energy supply chains, infrastructure, and science and technology,” Lee said.
Separately, 30 NATO members sent ambassadors to the ROK for a three-day visit in mid-April 2026 to enhance defense industry cooperation. The delegation met with Foreign Affairs Minister Cho Hyun and toured defense companies
“It’s not only about the armed forces, it’s not only about the quality of our army — it’s also about the strength of the defense industry to provide to the armed forces what is needed,” David Konecký, the Czech Republic’s ambassador to NATO, told the Korea JoongAng Daily newspaper. “Both Korea and Japan are very strong in the defense industry.
“It’s not only about the Korean defense industry providing us products — what is more interesting for us is the cooperation,” Konecký said. “And whenever Korea is helping Europe to be more prosperous and grow, that is actually helping our defense spending.”