The naval chiefs of Korea and Canada will meet Friday and discuss ways to expand their cooperation on maritime security and the arms industry, Korea's Navy said, amid Seoul's bid to win a landmark Canadian submarine project.
Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Kang Dong-gil and Vice Adm. Angus Topshee, commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, will meet at a naval base in Jinhae, South Gyeongsang, later Friday, the armed service said.
In the meeting, Kang plans to explain to Topshee a "total solution" approach that encompasses education and training, as well as follow-up support measures for the submarine project, it added.
Korean defense firm Hanwha Ocean was short-listed as one of the two "qualified suppliers," or preferred bidders, along with Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems for a major Canadian submarine contract.
Under the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project, Ottawa plans to acquire up to 12 submarines for the Royal Canadian Navy to upgrade its submarine fleet, with an aim to receive the first new vessel by no later than 2035.
Topshee, who is on a five-day trip to Korea, visited Hanwha Ocean's shipyard in the southeastern city of Geoje, South Gyeongsang, the previous day for a tour of the ROKS Jang Yeong-sil, the country's first 3,600-ton naval attack submarine.
Earlier in the day, he boarded a 3,000-ton submarine in waters off a key naval base in the southeastern city of Busan, the Navy said.