Hyundai Rotem acquires NATO quality assurance certificate for 1st time

The Army's K2 tanks fire at the Seungjin Fire Training Field in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province, May 28. Yonhap

The state-run defense agency in charge of quality assurance has awarded Hyundai Rotem Co. a certificate for quality management standards required by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in regard to the supply of defense products, officials said Monday.

Hyundai Rotem received the certificate confirming that it meets NATO's quality assurance standards for its K2 tanks and other arms products, according to the Defense Agency for Technology and Quality.

It marks the first time the agency has conferred the certificate on a defense firm since it acquired the right in March last year.

The move is expected to bolster the entry of domestic defense firms into NATO's collective defense procurement market, reportedly valued at 15 trillion won ($10 billion), and enhance the credibility of the quality assurance system, according to officials.