South Korea's Defense Minister Highlights Submarine Bid In Call With Canadian Counterpart

(MENAFN- IANS) Seoul, June 4 (IANS) Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back held a phone call with his Canadian counterpart, David McGuinty, on Thursday and underscored the commitment to expanding bilateral defence ties amid South Korea's push to win Canada's submarine procurement project, the defence ministry said.

During the talks, Ahn expressed hope that the two countries would strengthen solidarity as key partners across a wide range of areas, including the submarine project, security and defence cooperation, and broader industrial collaboration.

The ministers agreed that their joint exercise last month helped further enhance interoperability between their navies, while reaffirming their shared commitment to peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

Ahn also praised the port visit of the 3,000-ton ROKS Dosan Ahn Chang-ho submarine to Esquimalt in Victoria last month, which marked the first trans-Pacific voyage by a South Korean submarine, the ministry said.

The Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP) is a major procurement program involving up to 12 diesel-electric submarines, which is estimated at up to 60 trillion won (US$39.7 billion), including construction, maintenance, repair and overhaul.

A consortium of Hanwha Ocean Co. and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. has been shortlisted for the project and is competing with Germany's Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS). Canada is expected to announce its preferred bidder later this month.

South Korea has proposed a hydrogen-powered truck project as part of its bid for a major Canadian submarine contract to boost its offer against Germany, according to a Canadian media report.

Presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik unveiled the proposal in an interview with Canada's CTV News on Wednesday (local time) during his visit to Canada as President Lee Jae Myung's special envoy supporting Seoul's campaign to supply 12 submarines to Ottawa.

During the interview, Kang said South Korea would invest more than $2.3 billion in Canada to help establish a hydrogen-powered trucking industry and create about 9,000 jobs through a project code-named "Project Beaver" if the Korean consortium wins the submarine contract.

MENAFN04062026000231011071ID1111212826