Poland has signed an agreement with South Korea to purchase 72 Chunmoo rocket artillery units and several thousand tactical guided missiles. Most of the systems will be built in Poland itself.
The deal, valued at $1.6 billion (6.4 billion zloty), comes after Poland had already ordered 218 launchers from South Korean defence firm Hanwha Aerospace at the end of 2022, under the previous Polish government. Deliveries are scheduled for 2026-2029.
Podczas wizyty delegacji polskiej w Korei została podpisana umowa wykonawcza na dostarczenie 72 modułów wyrzutni HOMAR-K oraz kilku tys. kierowanych pocisków rakietowych. Pozyskane technologie pozwolą na wykorzystanie 122 mm amunicji rakietowej produkowanej w polskim przemyśle. pic.twitter.com/M9C1jDmh2w
— Paweł Bejda (@pawelbejda) April 25, 2024
The system, known as HOMAR-K in Poland, consists of the South Korean multi-launcher K239 Chunmoo mounted on a Polish Jelcz chassis. It is adapted to the needs of the Polish armed forces and is capable of launching several types of guided missiles.
Poland’s IAR news agency reports that 12 of the newly acquired launchers will be manufactured in South Korea and the other 60 will be built in Poland.
“The concluded agreement will significantly impact the development of the Polish defence industry’s potential,” said Poland’s defence ministry.
“The acquired technologies will allow the establishment of production capabilities and the conduct of repairs and modernisations, as well as the production of spare parts for the purchased launchers.”
Poland has agreed the purchase of 288 K239 Chunmoo rocket artillery launchers from South Korea.
"Ukraine's effective defence against the Russian invasion shows how important artillery is," says Poland's defence minister https://t.co/j9ZWHLLjg1
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) October 20, 2022
The CEO of Hanwha Aerospace, Jaeil Son, said that the deal signifies the company’s “dedication to supporting the enhancement of security in Poland and the region, irrespective of political and societal changes”.
“Hanwha Aerospace is proud of our ongoing dedication to delivering deterrence solutions to regions with urgent demands.” said Son, as quoted in a statement.
In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Poland ramped up defence spending to 4% of GDP, the highest relative level in NATO. Much of its procurement came from South Korea, including 48 FA-50 light combat aircraft, 189 K2 tanks and 212 K9 self-propelled howitzers.
However, when a new government took office in December last year, it warned that it could cancel some of the arms deals signed by its predecessor. But it has remained committed to the overall higher defence budget introduced by the previous administration.
Two leaders of Poland's incoming ruling coalition say the new administration could cancel arms deals signed by the outgoing government in its final weeks in office.
That includes a $2.6 billion deal with South Korea to purchase howitzers https://t.co/Zpz5BRczfu
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) December 12, 2023
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Main image credit: Hanwha Aerospace press materials
Alicja Ptak is senior editor at Notes from Poland and a multimedia journalist. She previously worked for Reuters.
