South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Kyu-baek met with Canadian counterpart David McGuinty in Ottawa on Sunday to discuss strengthening bilateral defense and arms industry cooperation, the Ministry of National Defense announced.
Ahn visited the Canadian capital to attend the second Republic of Korea-Canada Foreign and Defense Ministers' 2+2 Meeting.
At the talks held at Canada's foreign ministry building, both ministers praised the continued progress in security and defense cooperation since the summit between President Lee Jae-myung and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney last year, according to the ministry.
McGuinty expressed expectations for deeper cooperation in future security areas, citing space and maritime security as particularly important fields for collaboration with South Korea.
Ahn emphasized that South Korea's participation in Canada's next-generation submarine program would go beyond a simple weapons export, serving as a turning point to dramatically advance the strategic defense and arms industry partnership between the two nations.
He stressed that South Korea could be the optimal choice for Canada, which seeks long-term partnership as outlined in its recently announced defense industry strategy.
During a working luncheon following the bilateral meeting, Ahn highlighted that North Korea's advancing nuclear and missile capabilities pose a serious threat to the international community. He called for Canada's support for South Korea's policy toward North Korea aimed at establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula and denuclearizing the North.
Ahn was scheduled to join Foreign Minister Cho Hyun at the second ROK-Canada 2+2 ministerial meeting later Sunday. The two sides planned to exchange views on bilateral relations, regional affairs, and international developments while discussing the future direction of their partnership.
The first ROK-Canada 2+2 ministerial meeting was held in Ottawa on November 1, 2024.