Korean defense firms deepen Poland ties as Europe demands local weapons production

KIELCE, Poland — Korean defense companies are stepping up localization in Europe as the region pushes to produce and maintain more weapons closer to home.

A K2 tank displayed by Hyundai Rotem at the International Defence Industry Exhibition (MSPO), which opened in Kielce, Poland, on Sept. 8, was fitted with a mobile camouflage system made by Polish company Miranda. A model of an armored vehicle-launched bridge, jointly developed with Polish company Obrum, was also on display at the company's booth.

The Homar-K, Hanwha Aerospace's Polish variant of the Chunmoo multiple rocket launcher, was also mounted on a Polish-made Jelcz truck at the exhibit.

Speedy delivery had been one of the Korean defense industry's key strengths in Europe amid the war in Ukraine. But as the war drags on, Europe is increasingly prioritizing local production and supply chains to secure stable supplies of ammunition and major weapons systems within the region.

"From 2022 to 2025, the strength of Korean companies was their ability to deliver weapons systems on time when Poland needed them," Col. Kim Hye-ryeong of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration said at a K-Defense partnership seminar at the exhibition. "The next stage [for us] will be industrial cooperation that allows Poland to operate, maintain and produce these weapons on its own."

Growing security concerns against a backdrop of several ongoing wars have increased the importance of localization.

The European Union has also set high production thresholds within the bloc as a condition for receiving defense funding, making it increasingly difficult to target the European market solely through exports of finished weapon systems.

"[Our defense industry] has focused on Eastern Europe, where weapons systems are needed immediately, but there are also expectations that countries could gravitate back toward France or Germany over the long term," an official from the Korea Research Institute for Defense Technology Planning and Advancement at the exhibit. "The barriers to entering Europe alone are high for Korean companies, and partnering with local companies is the most realistic approach."

Poland, one of Europe's largest defense markets on NATO's eastern flank bordering Russia, is a key testing ground for that strategy.

Warsaw has already deployed Korean-made weapons on a large scale, including K2 tanks, K9 self-propelled howitzers and Chunmoo multiple rocket launchers.

Hyundai Rotem has opted to develop the K2PL, a tank variant tailored for Poland, and localize its production.

Hyundai Rotem's second implementation contract with Poland, signed in 2025, calls for the delivery of 180 K2 tanks through 2030, including 64 K2PLs.

Of the 64 K2PLs, three prototypes will be built in Korea, and the remaining 61 will have some components produced in Poland and undergo final assembly there. Hyundai Rotem is transferring technology to the Polish defense company Bumar-Labedy to do so. Additional production technology for key components, including the autoloader, could also be transferred if Poland exercises an option under the contract.

"Poland is the first overseas market for exports of completed K2 tanks," Kang Kyung-tae, head of Hyundai Rotem's European defense office in Poland, said. "If a country that has actually used them steps forward and says, 'We've used them, and they're good,' it is much more helpful when expanding into other countries."

Operating the same weapons systems also offers advantages in training and logistics support, Kang said.

Kang also addressed concerns that localization could reduce opportunities for suppliers of Korean defense parts.

"The domestic market had previously been the only market for our defense industry," Kang said. "If exports to Europe expand, the number of clients will grow, creating new opportunities for business expansion for parts suppliers in Korea as well."

Hanwha Aerospace is also expanding localization beyond K9 and Chunmoo production to maintenance and parts supply.

Hanwha Aerospace's second implementation contract with Poland, signed in December 2023, calls for the delivery of 152 K9 self-propelled howitzers through 2027. The contract includes ammunition, integrated logistics support, local production of maintenance parts and technical support for maintenance and upgrades.

A parts warehouse under construction in Poland will be linked to a digital logistics support platform, with plans to develop it into a maintenance, repair and overhaul hub that can support other European countries operating K9s.

"Localization is now essential for exporting products that require large-scale capital investment in Europe," a Hanwha Aerospace official said.

Hanwha is also seeking a third implementation contract with Poland for K9 self-propelled howitzers.

LIG Defense & Aerospace aims to enter the European market through a joint venture with a European company.

The company plans to establish a joint venture with Germany's Rheinmetall to develop short-range air defense systems and market them together in Europe. The companies aim to establish the joint venture by the end of this year.

"Barriers around Europe's defense industry are growing stronger, creating constraints on entering the market," an LIG Defense & Aerospace official said. "Working with a proven local company and complementing each other's capabilities can create synergies."

BY SUK GYEONG-MIN [[email protected]]