Ottawa: President Lee Jae Myung and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney held talks on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Canada on Tuesday and discussed ways to step up cooperation in defense, the arms industry, and other areas, Lee's office said.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the two leaders agreed to expand cooperation in areas including security, the defense industry, energy security, climate change, and artificial intelligence. During their first in-person meeting, Lee expressed his intention to deepen security and defense industry cooperation with Canada through South Korea's participation in Canada's submarine acquisition program.

Carney responded that he is well aware of South Korea's defense capabilities and proposed that the two countries actively cooperate for regional and global security. Canada is seeking to acquire new conventionally powered submarines to replace its aging vessels, with South Korean shipbuilders competing for the project reportedly worth around US$20 billion.

The two leaders also shared assessments of the recent situation on the Korean Peninsula and exchanged opinions on developments in Ukraine and the Middle East. In particular, they expressed "grave concerns" over the worsening situation in the Middle East and agreed on the need to swiftly ease tensions in the region, the office said.