Gyeongju: President Lee Jae Myung and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney have reached a pivotal agreement to enhance their nations' strategic partnership in defense, security, and military intelligence sharing, following summit talks held on Thursday.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the two leaders endorsed a joint statement that marks Canada's inaugural strategic partnership in security and defense with a country in the Indo-Pacific region. This partnership aims to expand arms and defense cooperation, and it is designed to provide a concrete framework to accelerate defense collaboration, improve interoperability and readiness, and strengthen defense industrial cooperation.
The statement highlights the partnership's role in advancing a free, open, and rules-based Indo-Pacific region, promoting innovation and resilience in defense industries, and creating new opportunities for workers and businesses in both Korea and Canada.
The summit was part of Carney's official visit to South Korea for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit and associated events in Gyeongju. During the meeting, the leaders also finalized negotiations over an agreement on the protection of military and defense classified information, which will establish a secure framework for the exchange and protection of such information, thereby supporting deeper defense and industrial cooperation.
This summit marked the second meeting between Lee and Carney, following their discussions in Canada during the Group of Seven summit in June, shortly after Lee assumed office. Subsequent to the talks, Carney visited Hanwha Ocean's shipyard in Geoje, accompanied by Prime Minister Kim Min-seok. Hanwha Ocean is contending with ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems of Germany to secure Canada's submarine acquisition program, valued at up to 60 trillion won (US$43.7 billion).
President Lee expressed optimism about South Korea's contribution to Canada's defense capabilities and arms industry, noting that Hanwha Ocean had been shortlisted for the submarine acquisition program. Carney acknowledged the advanced submarine technology of Korean shipbuilders and planned to evaluate their capabilities during his visit to the shipyard.
In addition to defense matters, Carney mentioned Canada's first significant shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to South Korea earlier this year, expressing a desire to broaden energy cooperation in small modular reactors and critical minerals.
The leaders also explored expanding cooperation in the cultural sector, with a bilateral agreement on the co-production of audiovisual content anticipated. President Lee referenced the Netflix animated film "K-Pop: Demon Hunters," directed by Korean Canadian filmmaker Maggie Kang, as an example of potential collaboration in cultural and creative industries. Carney echoed this sentiment, stating that the audiovisual co-production agreement is expected to lay the groundwork for institutionalizing cooperation in the production of dramas and animations.