The Ministry of National Defense said on the 9th that Ahn Gyu-baek, Minister of National Defense, held talks on the 8th (local time) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with Saudi Minister of Defense Khalid bin Salman Al Saud.
According to the Ministry of National Defense that day, on the occasion of the defense ministers' meeting, Korea's Agency for Defense Development (ADD) and the Saudi defense research institute signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on cooperation in defense research and development. Minister Ahn and Minister Khalid assessed that the two countries had laid the foundation for a future-oriented strategic partnership to build a joint cooperation framework for mutual benefit in areas such as research and development, defense technology, and system innovation.
Minister Ahn proposed advancing future-oriented defense and defense industry cooperation and invited Minister Khalid to visit Korea within the year. Minister Khalid responded that Saudi Arabia and Korea have a future-oriented strategic partnership and said he hopes Korea's outstanding technology and experience will help strengthen Saudi Arabia's defense capabilities.
Minister Ahn attended the 3rd World Defense Show (WDS 2026) in Saudi Arabia, visited the exhibition halls of Korean defense companies, and listened to voices from the export front lines. WDS 2026 is one of the world's largest defense exhibitions, with more than 700 companies from 80 countries participating. Minister Ahn's visit was made at Saudi Arabia's invitation.