Bahk Eun-ji has been with The Korea Times since 2012, building a career across multiple desks. She began at the Business Desk, where she conducted in-depth interviews with key figures in Korea's corporate world. Later, she moved to the Politics & City Desk, focusing on education policy and social affairs. She later served as team leader of the digital content team, leading curation efforts on the newspaper’s homepage and reshaping print stories for social media audiences to enhance digital reach. Now back on the Politics Desk, she covers the National Assembly and the Ministry of National Defense, with a renewed focus on political developments.
Hanwha Aerospace signs $4 bil. Chunmoo missile contract with Poland
Son Jae-il, left, president and CEO of Hanwha Aerospace, and Kang Hoon-sik, fourth from left, presidential chief of staff, pose for a photo with other officials during a ceremony to sign a third execution contract to supply Chunmoo guided missiles (CGR-080) at the Polish Army Museum in Warsaw, Poland, Monday (local time). Courtesy of Hanwha Aerospace
By Bahk Eun-ji
3rd Chunmoo execution contract brings system’s total exports to Poland to 12.6 tril. won
Hanwha Aerospace has signed an execution contract worth about 5.6 trillion won ($4 billion) to supply Chunmoo guided missiles to Poland, according to the company and government officials.
The contract was signed on Monday (local time) at the Polish Army Museum in Warsaw with the Polish Armament Agency. It covers the supply of CGR-080 guided missiles with a maximum range of 80 kilometers and will be carried out through Hanwha-WB Advanced System, a joint venture established by Hanwha Aerospace and Poland’s WB Group. The missiles will be produced at a dedicated facility in Poland, with deliveries scheduled to begin in 2030.
This is the third execution contract Poland has signed for the Chunmoo multiple rocket launcher system. Hanwha Aerospace concluded a framework agreement with Poland in 2022 and later that year signed its first execution contract, valued at about 5 trillion won. A second execution contract worth roughly 2 trillion won followed in April 2024. With the latest agreement, the total value of Chunmoo-related contracts with Poland has reached about 12.6 trillion won.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Kang Hoon-sik, presidential chief of staff, said the latest agreement reflects a shift toward joint production.
“This third Chunmoo contract is not simply about exporting weapons produced in Korea,” Kang said. “It is a model in which Korea and Poland establish a joint venture, build production facilities in Poland and manufacture the system together.”
Kang said defense industry cooperation has expanded alongside broader bilateral ties. “Just as cooperation in political, economic and security fields has continued to deepen, cooperation in the defense industry has also moved to a higher stage,” he said. “I hope this partnership will become one that remains firm in the face of future challenges.”
Son Jae-il, president and CEO of Hanwha Aerospace, described the agreement as the result of sustained cooperation with the company's Polish partners. “This contract is a milestone based on the trust between Hanwha and Poland,” Son said. “Hanwha will continue to work with the Polish defense industry to deliver both security and economic value.”
Chunmoo, officially designated K239, is a modular multiple rocket launcher system capable of firing a range of guided and unguided munitions. In Poland, the system has been introduced under the Homar-K program, which integrates Polish command-and-control systems and places increasing emphasis on local production.
The Chunmoo contracts are part of Poland’s wider procurement of Korean defense systems since 2022. Hanwha Aerospace has also signed two execution contracts to supply K9 self-propelled howitzers to Poland. The first contract, signed in August 2022, covered 212 units, followed by a second contract in December 2023 for an additional 152 units. The combined value of the two K9 contracts is estimated at about 6.7 trillion won.
Other Korean defense companies have also secured major contracts with Poland. Korea Aerospace Industries signed a $3 billion agreement to supply 48 FA-50 light combat aircraft, while Hyundai Rotem concluded two execution contracts for K2 main battle tanks, with deliveries and localized production arrangements extending through the latter half of the decade.
Based on publicly disclosed execution contracts, Poland’s confirmed purchases of Korean weapons systems amount to roughly 31 trillion won. This figure reflects signed execution contracts only and does not include remaining quantities outlined in framework agreements that have not yet been finalized.