Lee and Macron upgrade Korea-France defense ties with military-secrets pact and logistics agreement at Paris summit

President Lee Jae-myung and French President Emmanuel Macron met at the Elysee Palace on September 9, 2026 during a two-day state visit marking 140 years of diplomatic relations, and agreed to deepen cooperation on military information, logistics, and the defense industry. The two sides signed an upgraded agreement on the protection of classified military information and committed to conclude a mutual military logistics support agreement. On defense industry, they pledged "mutually beneficial projects based on France's technological expertise and South Korea's manufacturing prowess," with Airbus cited as a likely partner, and agreed to joint R&D on AI, semiconductors, and quantum technology plus cooperation on next-generation nuclear reactors and supply-chain diversification. The leaders also set a target of $20 billion in bilateral trade by 2030 and agreed to coordinate on freedom-of-navigation efforts in the Middle East. The summit followed French interest earlier in 2026 in the K239 Chunmoo as a candidate for its long-range fires requirement.