What did South Korea and the Czech Republic discuss at the Seoul Defense Dialogue?

They discussed ways to strengthen defense and arms cooperation. The two ministers also talked about expanding cooperation and exchanges in defense and security sectors, and Ahn said he wanted to deepen complementary relations between the two countries.

Why did Ahn Gyu-back ask the Czech Republic to support Seoul’s North Korea policy?

Ahn said North Korea’s advancing nuclear and missile capabilities pose a grave threat to the international community. He made the request while discussing broader defense cooperation with his Czech counterpart in Seoul.

Which other defense ministers did Ahn Gyu-back meet besides the Czech defense minister?

Ahn also met Papua New Guinea Defense Minister Elias Kapavore to discuss expanding defense cooperation. He earlier met Ugandan counterpart Kiryowa Kiwanuka and reviewed cooperation in military training and taekwondo.

Defense chiefs of Korea, Czech Republic discuss expanding defense cooperation

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Summary

Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back met Czech Defense Minister Jaromir Zuna in Seoul on Tuesday to discuss expanding defense and arms cooperation. Zuna praised bilateral cooperation in sectors including nuclear power plants and called for deeper defense and security exchanges. Ahn pledged efforts to broaden defense cooperation and deepen complementary ties. He also asked for Czech support for Seoul’s North Korea policy.

Key Facts

Ahn met Zuna on the sidelines of the Seoul Defense Dialogue in Seoul, where Zuna took part in a plenary session.
Zuna said bilateral cooperation has been strong in several sectors, including nuclear power plants.
Ahn said North Korea’s advancing nuclear and missile capabilities pose a grave threat to the international community.
Ahn also met Papua New Guinea Defense Minister Elias Kapavore to discuss expanding defense cooperation.
Ahn earlier met Ugandan counterpart Kiryowa Kiwanuka and reviewed cooperation in military training and taekwondo.

By Yonhap

Published Sep 8, 2026 8:55 pm KST

Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back, left, poses with his Czech counterpart, Jaromir Zuna, on the sidelines of the Seoul Defense Dialogue in Seoul, Tuesday. Courtesy of Ministry of National Defense

Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back met with his Czech counterpart on Tuesday to discuss ways to strengthen defense and arms cooperation, Seoul's defense ministry said.

Ahn met with Czech Defense Minister Jaromir Zuna on the sidelines of the Seoul Defense Dialogue in Seoul, where Zuna participated in a plenary session, according to the ministry.

Zuna highly assessed the state of bilateral cooperation with Seoul in a number of sectors, including nuclear power plants, and expressed hope to further expand cooperation and exchanges in the defense and security sectors.

In response, Ahn pledged efforts to expand cooperation in the defense sector and further deepen their complementary relations based on the countries' strengths in different areas.

Ahn also called on his Czech counterpart to support Seoul's policy on North Korea, given the grave threat the North's advancing nuclear and missile capabilities pose to the international community.

The Korean defense chief also met with the defense minister of Papua New Guinea, Elias Kapavore, to discuss expanding defense cooperation, according to the ministry.

Ahn earlier met with his Ugandan counterpart, Kiryowa Kiwanuka, and reviewed the status of defense cooperation between the two nations, including in the field of military training and taekwondo, and discussed ways to deepen cooperation.

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