Army chiefs of Korea, Poland discuss expanding military, defense industry cooperation
Gen. Kim Kyu-ha, left, chief of staff of the Republic of Korea Army, poses with Gen. Wieslaw Kukula, chief of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces, during the former's visit to Warsaw, Poland, Monday. Courtesy of Republic of Korea Army
Seeking to cement Korea’s growing role as a vital defense supplier to NATO’s eastern flank, Gen. Kim Kyu-ha, chief of staff of the Republic of Korea Army, embarked on a three-day official visit to Poland aimed at deepening military ties and securing the operational future of billions of dollars in arms sales.
The visit, which concluded Tuesday, highlights the deepening ties between Warsaw and Seoul following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As European nations scramble to modernize their arsenals, Poland has emerged as Korea’s most ambitious defense partner in Europe, placing multibillion-dollar orders for tanks, howitzers and light fighter jets.
Kim’s trip, hosted by the Polish General Command, followed a visit to Korea’s Gyeryongdae military headquarters in March by Lt. Gen. Marek Sokolowski, the general commander of the Polish Armed Forces. After laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw on Monday, Kim held consecutive high-level meetings with Sokolowski and Gen. Wieslaw Kukula, chief of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces.
The consultations yielded a concrete commitment to establish an institutionalized framework: a regular consultative body designated as the "army talks." The forum will facilitate expanded high-level exchanges, joint exercises and strategic collaboration across drone warfare, military innovation and front-line surveillance operations.
Crucially, the talks focused on long-term sustainability.
Korea’s rapid delivery schedules originally sealed its defense deals with Poland, but maintaining those weapon systems in high-readiness environments presents a complex logistical hurdle. Kim emphasized the strategic necessity of maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) infrastructure to ensure operational continuity.
"Based on the achievements of our bilateral defense cooperation, I hope we can further solidify mutual trust and expand exchange and cooperation," Kim said during one of his meetings. "In particular, let us actively communicate to broaden the scope of our military exchanges — not only through cooperation in the MRO sector to ensure the stable operation of weapon systems, but also across education, training and military innovation."
Polish military leadership echoed the drive for deeper integration.
Sokolowski noted unmanned aerial systems, counter-drone networks and artificial intelligence (AI) as critical areas for mutual development. Kukula, meanwhile, underscored the need for joint exercises designed to enhance tactical interoperability, pointing to Korea's Army TIGER+ digital battlefield framework and AI-driven border surveillance as models for Polish modernization.
Before departing, Kim met with representatives from Korean defense firms operating in Warsaw to assess supply-chain reliability. He later observed a Polish river-crossing exercise featuring drone units and Korean-built hardware — a vivid demonstration of how Asian defense technology is being integrated directly onto NATO’s front line.
This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.