Seoul mulls adding another military attache to Poland for arms industry cooperation

SEOUL, July 25 (Yonhap) -- South Korea is considering sending to Poland another military attache in charge of arms industry cooperation, an informed source said Monday, following a media report about Warsaw's push to purchase Korean-made weapons.

In an interview with Polish media last week, Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said his country plans to purchase 48 FA-50 jets and 180 K-2 battle tanks as well as howitzers to reinforce its military amid the war in Ukraine.

If dispatched, the new attache is expected to be posted at the South Korean Embassy in Poland and take charge of technical issues related to the implementation of a potential arms export deal with Poland.

The process of creating a defense attache post usually takes years, as it requires a due step to change the overall quota of embassy personnel. But the process could proceed faster than usual, given the post is likely to be temporary for a specific defense deal with Poland.

South Korean officials have so far remained low-key about reports on Poland's push for the arms purchase, apparently as any defense deal could face hurdles due to political, diplomatic and other issues.

During their talks in Seoul in May, South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup and Blaszczak agreed to work together to strengthen "practical" defense industry cooperation, which would help contribute to enhancing their "common interests."

colin@yna.co.kr
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