▲ This undated file photo provided by Hanwha Aerospace Co. shows a K9 self-propelled howitzer produced by the company. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
▲ Lee Yong-cheol (R), minister of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), shakes hands with Romanian Defense Minister Radu-Dinel Miruta on Feb. 10, 2026, in Romania, in this photo provided by DAPA the following day. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

(LEAD) S Korea-Romania-arms industry

(LEAD) DAPA chief attends groundbreaking ceremony for Hanwha's K9 howitzer plant in Romania

(ATTN: REWRITES headline; ADDS details in paras 4-7, photo)

By Lee Minji

SEOUL, Feb. 11 (Yonhap) -- The chief of South Korea's defense procurement agency on Wednesday attended a groundbreaking ceremony for a plant to produce K9 self-propelled howitzers in Romania, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said, in a follow-up to a major export deal signed in 2024.

The ceremony came about 1 1/2 years after South Korean defense firm Hanwha Aerospace Co. signed a 1.4 trillion-won (US$1 billion) deal with the European country in July 2024 to supply 54 K9s and 36 K10 armored ammunition resupply vehicles.

Under the deal, the two sides had agreed to build a local production plant in Romania in what were seen as efforts to strengthen bilateral arms industry cooperation and boost overseas arms exports.

The plant, named Hanwha Armoured vehicle Centre of Excellence Europe, is designed to serve as a key production base for the company, while offering maintenance and testing support for the vehicles, according to Hanwha Aerospace.

The 181,055-square-meter site will house advanced assembly lines, performance testing facilities, as well as a 1,751-meter-long test track.

Hanwha plans to gradually expand the site so that it can become a regional production and support hub for other ground systems, such as infantry fighting vehicles and long-range precision strike systems.

It seeks to deepen partnerships with Romanian companies to strengthen its local production capabilities and raise the plant's localization rate to up to 80 percent.

"The local production of K9 self-propelled howitzer is a case that demonstrates how South Korea seeks to strengthen its partner country's arms industry capabilities," DAPA Minister Lee Yong-cheol said in his congratulatory remarks.

"DAPA will continue to support mutually beneficial cooperation for (South Korean defense firms) and partner countries based on the companies' localization strategies," Lee said.

As part of his two-day visit to Romania, Lee also held back-to-back talks with senior government and parliamentary officials, including the defense and economy ministers, where both sides concurred on strengthening practical cooperation between the two nations.

The trip came as South Korea seeks to export Hanwha's Redback infantry fighting vehicle and Hyundai Rotem Co.'s K2 battle tank for Romania's bid to modernize its armored assets.

(END)

[ⓒ K-VIBE. 무단전재-재배포 금지]