Ottawa: South Korea and Canada will convene their “two plus two” talks involving their foreign and defense ministers in Ottawa next week to explore avenues for enhancing bilateral relations, as announced by Seoul’s foreign ministry on Friday. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back are scheduled to meet with their Canadian counterparts, Anita Anand and David McGuinty, on Wednesday.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the discussions will culminate with the signing of a joint military and defense intelligence-sharing agreement and a subsequent press conference. Additionally, the foreign and defense ministers are expected to engage in separate bilateral discussions with their respective counterparts on the sidelines of the upcoming talks.

This meeting marks the first “two plus two” dialogue between top foreign and defense officials from South Korea and Canada since their last assembly in Ottawa in November 2024. The talks also align with South Korea’s efforts to secure a significant Canadian submarine procurement contract, which is valued at approximately 60 trillion won (US$41 billion). The proposal aims to supply up to 12 3,000-ton class naval submarines to Canada, with the deadline for submissions set for early March.