Recent geopolitical and geo-economic developments have fostered greater industrial, military, and diplomatic cooperation between South Korea and the Visegrád 4 countries—Czechia, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia. Two key factors underpin this trend: the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which has spurred arms purchases and defense manufacturing collaboration with South Korea, and advancements in electric vehicles (EVs) and battery technology, which, when coupled with the European Union’s push for decarbonization, created strong incentives for South Korean firms in the EV sector to invest in the V4 region.
This paper, authored by Martin Šebeňa, Seong Hyeon Choi, Gary Ng, and Thomas Chan, examines recent developments in South Korea’s arms and EV collaborations with the V4, analyzes the underlying drivers, and offers policy recommendations to ensure these partnerships continue to thrive.
This paper we supported by Korea Foundation.
