The Defense Acquisition Program Administration on July 2 said Poland and Korea's Hyundai Rotem finished negotiations on the second export contract for Korea's K2 tank, one of which is shown at the port of Gdynia in Poland. (Hyundai Rotem)

By Lee Dasom

The second contract for exporting the country's K2 tank to Poland has been finalized.

Polish Minister of Defense Wladyslaw Marcin Kosiniak-Kamysz on July 2 announced that negotiations with Korea's Hyundai Rotem were completed on the deal and expected the conclusion of the contract, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) of Korea said.

The scale of the transaction was not disclosed but is known to be around USD 6.7 billion (KRW 9 trillion). The signing ceremony will be attended by high-ranking officials from the governments of both countries.

Per the second contract, Hyundai Rotem will develop and deliver homegrown K2 and Polish K2 tanks that meet the performance conditions of the Polish military.

A plant to assemble and manufacture the tank in Poland will also be built through cooperation between Hyundai Rotem and Polish defense contractors.

"The setup of an on-site production foothold is all the more significant as it boosts the potential for follow-up contracts on delivering the remaining K2 tanks as stipulated in the general contract," DAPA said.

"This export contract combines our defense industry's strengths of outstanding performance and production competitiveness with customized improvements and local production of the partner country. This is expected to form the foundation for new exports of the defense sector not only to each European nation but also at the NATO level."

In 2022, Poland signed the general accord with Korean defense companies.

The same year, it signed the initial contracts for four types of weapon systems: the K2 tank; K9 Thunder (self-propelled howitzer); FA-50 (light combat aircraft); and Cheonmu (multiple rocket launcher).

Afterward, the second contract for the K9 Thunder was concluded in 2023 and that for Cheonmu last year.

Conclusion of the second contract for the K2 tank was also expected at the time but negotiations lasted longer after the deal's value grew to include the development of K2 tanks customized for Poland and production there.

"The second export contract for the K2 tank is a chance to confirm the continuation of firm bilateral cooperation with Poland in the defense industry," DAPA Minister Seok Jong Gun said. "We will keep up full support so that the K2 tank can be responsible for not only Korea's national security but Europe's as well."

dlektha0319@korea.kr