Philippe Lafortune, Canada's ambassador to South Korea, speaks during a parliamentary meeting of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee on Tuesday. (Yonhap)
Philippe Lafortune, Canada's ambassador to South Korea, speaks during a parliamentary meeting of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee on Tuesday. (Yonhap)

South Korea's parliamentary National Defense Committee on Tuesday approved a resolution to support the expansion of defense and defense industry cooperation between South Korea and Canada.

The resolution was sponsored by Rep. Sung Il-jong of the People Power Party, who chairs the 15-member committee. It gained bipartisan consent at the committee level and was handed over to Canadian Ambassador to South Korea Philippe Lafortune, who was present at the parliamentary committee's general meeting Tuesday.

"The complementary combination of Korea’s advanced manufacturing capabilities and Canada’s abundant resources and foundational technologies through solidarity and cooperation projects, contributes not only to the enhancement of both countries’ defence capabilities, but also to expanded industrial and technological cooperation, greater supply chain resilience, and job creation," read the resolution, adding the two countries are "optimal partners capable of meeting each other’s strategic needs."

Moreover, the resolution also highlighted a Canadian missionary and scholar Frank Schofield's devotion to South Korea's independence from Japanese colonial rule in the early 20th century, describing him as a “blue-eyed independence activist.” It also noted the Canadian armed forces' deployment of 27,000 service members to fight alongside South Korea during the Korean War (1950-1953).

Sung said in a statement that the resolution will serve as a "milestone for the new future" between the two countries.

Rep. Sung Il-jong (left) and Philippe Lafortune pose for a photo during a general meeting of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee on Tuesday. (Yonhap)
Rep. Sung Il-jong (left) and Philippe Lafortune pose for a photo during a general meeting of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee on Tuesday. (Yonhap)

Rep. Kim Byung-joo, a four-star Army general-turned-lawmaker of the Democratic Party of Korea who visited Canada as a presidential envoy last year, said Tuesday that the resolution will provide an impetus for the bilateral defense technology transfer and joint technology research.

The resolution is the latest in the deepening ties between the two countries. A South Korean consortium comprising Hanhwa Ocean and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries is one of two contenders shortlisted for the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project to procure up to 12 attack submarines for the Canadian Navy.

In this vein, South Korea and Canada agreed to establish the "Security and Defense Cooperation Partnership" during the summit of President Lee Jae Myung and Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney on the sidelines of the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in November.

Canada's authorities are expected to announce the most preferred bidder in June.


consnow@heraldcorp.com