Hyundai Rotem wins first NATO quality certificate from Korean defense agency

The certification for K2 tanks and other defense products is expected to strengthen Korean firms’ access to NATO’s $10 billion procurement market.

K2 tanks fire at the Seungjin Fire Training Field in Pocheon, near the inter-Korean border, on May 28.

The state-run defense agency in charge of quality assurance has awarded Hyundai Rotem a certificate for quality management standards required by NATO in regard to the supply of defense products, officials said Monday.

Hyundai Rotem received the certificate confirming that it meets NATO's quality assurance standards for its K2 tanks and other arms products, according to the Defense Agency for Technology and Quality.

It marks the first time the agency has conferred the certificate on a defense firm since it acquired the right in March last year.

The move is expected to bolster the entry of Korean defense firms into NATO's collective defense procurement market, reportedly valued at 15 trillion won ($10 billion), and enhance the credibility of the quality assurance system, according to officials.


Yonhap