People Power Party: Submarine Contract Failure Due to Government's Lax Diplomatic and Security Awareness

▲ The South Korea-Canada joint naval cooperation exercise held off the coast of western Canada from June 4 to 5, Korea Standard Time.

The People Power Party criticized the failure of Hanwha Ocean to be selected as the preferred bidder for the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP) today (July 7), calling it a "painful result caused by the government's lax diplomatic and security awareness."

Representative Jang Dong-hyuk wrote on social media today, "Defense exports can never succeed through the efforts of companies alone," adding, "The failure to win the contract despite having the world's best competitiveness is ultimately the government's responsibility."

He continued, "Lee Jae-myung says 'the challenge continues,' and Kang Hoon-sik says 'they fought well even though they lost.' It was the company that fought well, and it was the government that lost."

He added, "They could have just said, 'We are sorry for the failure'... their excuses are too long."

Chief Spokesperson Choi Bo-yoon said in a commentary today, "It is time for a cold review of the government's diplomatic and security strategy, specifically whether it sufficiently considered the security priorities and strategic solidarity of the partner nation as a NATO member."

Representative Kim Gunn, a former diplomat, assessed on Facebook that it is "very regrettable as it is a case where concerns raised in the past have become reality," citing the fact that the President did not attend the NATO summit shortly after taking office last year and that the Ambassador to Canada was only appointed in March of this year.

Representative Kim pointed out, "We must be able to provide not only world-class technical capabilities but also diplomatic trust that one can feel secure when cooperating with the Republic of Korea," adding, "We must promptly resolve vacancies in diplomatic missions in major countries and deploy personnel with diplomatic capabilities in a timely manner."

(Photo: Provided by the Navy, Yonhap News)

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