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Lee's aide delivers president's letter to Canadian PM to support submarine bid

Published: 29 Jan. 2026, 11:57

Kang Hoon-sik, left, President Lee Jae Myung's chief of staff, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney pose for a photo after Kang delivered Lee's personal letter to Carney, in this photo captured from Kang's Facebook account. [YONHAP]

President Lee Jae Myung's top aide said Thursday he has delivered Lee's personal letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney during his visit to Canada as part of his efforts to support Korea's bid to win a major submarine project.

Kang Hoon-sik, who is visiting Canada as a special envoy for strategic economic cooperation, said in a Facebook post that he met with Carney and other senior Canadian officials to discuss the submarine project as well as ways to expand security and defense industry cooperation.

His visit came as a Korean consortium, led by Hanwha Ocean and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, was shortlisted as a final contender to win the Canadian submarine program, estimated at around 60 trillion won (US$41.4 billion), alongside Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems.

Kang said he briefed Canadian officials on Korea's advanced submarine technology and highlighted the Korean government's commitment to support broader security and defense industry cooperation between the two nations.

Canada's Minister of State for Defense Procurement Stephen Fuhr plans to visit Korea next week and personally board a submarine currently operated by the Korean Navy, according to Kang.

"Canada has a firm determination to make the submarine acquisition program a turning point for the fundamental transformation of its industrial and security policy," Kang wrote.

Kang said securing the Canadian contract would represent a "major step forward" for Korea's defense industry, marking its largest defense deal in Western markets and potentially serving as a springboard for broader expansion into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) market.

Yonhap