With Korea's failure to secure Canada's multibillion-dollar submarine procurement contract being the latest in a string of high-profile defense export losses in Western markets, experts advise the country to make a fundamental shift in how it approaches buyers aligned with NATO. The Canada deal, which went to a German-Norwegian consortium largely on grounds of NATO interoperability, followed a series of similar setbacks. In June, Hanwha Aerospace lost a 900 billion won ($599 million) French multiple-launch rocket system upgrade contract to a U.K.-French consortium. In May, it lost a 6 trillion won contract for Romania's next-generation infantry fighting vehicles to Germany's Rheinmetall. In November 2025, Hanwha Ocean lost an 8 trillion won bid for Poland's next-generation submarine program to Sweden's Saab. After losing the Canadian submarine deal, President Lee Jae Myung said the competition demonstrated the potential of Korean defense products, while a senior Defense Acquisition Program Administration official pledged to focus on improving product quality and technological competiti