Submarines among equipment offered in South Korea-Canada deal

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March 13, 2025
2 min read

Submarines among equipment offered in South Korea-Canada deal

South Korea is offering Canada a range of new military equipment deals, including submarines, highlighting that it can be a trustworthy ally. This comes as US president Donald Trump announces policies including cutting military aid to Ukraine and threatening to take over Canada. The move has pushed America’s allies to reconsider their security arrangements.

Efforts are already underway in Europe to look to more domestic and non-American sources to reduce reliance on the US. A delegation of around a dozen defence industry and government officials from South Korea visited Ottawa earlier this month, proposing to offer Canada’s military a range of new equipment.

These include howitzers, training aircraft, rocket launchers, and submarines. The proposal included promises of many benefit for Canada’s industry and a secure supply chain.

Retired South Korean Admiral, Steve Jeong, is vice president of Hanwha Ocean. The company’s submarine, KSS-III, is now in service and meets all of Canada’s requirements, he said. ““Once the contract is signed, we can deliver in six years,” he told Canadian media.

South Korea’s submarines, three of which have already been built, can spend over three weeks underwater without needing to surface, according to Jeong. Their boats, he added, have a range of over 7,000 nautical miles, capabilities that he said would make them useful in Arctic operations.

South Korea would also establish maintenance facilities in Canada. Unlike with American weapons systems, South Korea also promises to give Canada complete access to its onboard technology. Hanwha has already begun signing alliances with Canadian companies for potential work on this proposal.

European nations have also looked to South Korea for military equipment due to ongoing issues with ordering from America or because of the effectiveness of the systems and speed they can be delivered.

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