South Korea, Poland upgrade ties, to boost defense cooperation

South Korea and Poland agreed on Monday to upgrade ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership and deepen defense industry cooperation.

The developments came during a summit in Seoul between South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who is paying the first visit by a Polish prime minister to the East Asian nation in 27 years, according to the Korea JoongAng Daily.

"I underscored the need for the steady implementation of the framework agreement already existing between our two countries, which is essential for deepening and advancing our defense industry cooperation," Lee said during a joint news conference after the summit talks.

South Korea and Poland signed a $44.2 billion framework deal in 2022 covering military exports, along with technology transfers and local production.

"We are contributing to the development of Poland's defense ecosystem through mutually beneficial cooperation, including local production, technology transfers and workforce training within Poland," Lee said.

The upgrade of the bilateral relationship to a "comprehensive strategic partnership" is the first in 13 years.

Seoul and Warsaw will also expand the scope of cooperation into future-oriented sectors such as advanced industries, science and technology, space, energy supply chains, and infrastructure.

Tusk, in turn, stressed South Korea as Poland's second most important ally after the US and that the defense industry, in particular, plays "such a role [in the allyship]."

The two leaders also "concurred on the importance of stabilizing global supply chains in response to the crisis triggered by the war in the Middle East."

The two countries have a bilateral trade volume of over $10 billion.