{"slug": "at-nato-lee-and-carney-look-beyond-seoul-s-failed-submarine-bid", "title": "At NATO, Lee and Carney look beyond Seoul's failed submarine bid", "summary": "South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney discussed future cooperation in artificial intelligence during a brief meeting at the NATO summit, hours after Canada selected Germany's Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems over South Korea's Hanwha Ocean for a submarine project. Seoul downplayed the failed bid, emphasizing that broader bilateral ties and AI collaboration remain priorities.", "body_md": "ANKARA, Turkey — President Lee Jae Myung and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney discussed future cooperation in artificial intelligence during a brief meeting on the sidelines of the NATO summit on Tuesday, Cheong Wa Dae said.\n\nThe talks came hours after Canada selected Germany's Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems as the preferred bidder for the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project, while South Korea's Hanwha Ocean was designated as the reserve bidder.\n\nNational Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac confirmed the meeting between Lee and Carney.\n\n\"During today's brief meeting, South Korea and Canada held serious and concrete discussions on future cooperation in AI,\" Wi told reporters during a press briefing.\n\nWi further disclosed that Lee had been briefed by Carney on the selection outcome before Canada's official announcement on Monday.\n\n\"Regarding the selection of the preferred bidder for Canada's submarine project, President Lee and Prime Minister Carney spoke over the weekend at the prime minister's request,\" Wi said. \"The Canadian side explained the outcome of the selection process to us in advance as a gesture of special consideration.\"\n\nWi stressed that the submarine competition would not affect broader bilateral ties.\n\n\"Korea and Canada will continue to deepen our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership,\" he said.\n\n\"Throughout the submarine bidding process, the two countries confirmed the potential for cooperation across a range of sectors, including national defense, the defense industry, energy and critical minerals, and we will continue to expand practical cooperation in those areas,\" Wi added.\n\nA senior Cheong Wa Dae official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the submarine project was not a major focus of Tuesday's discussions because the issue had already been addressed during the leaders' weekend phone call.\n\n\"There was extensive discussion about the submarine project during the call with the Canadian prime minister over the weekend. As a result, the issue did not feature prominently in today's meeting,\" the official said. \"The main focus of today's talks was cooperation in emerging areas, particularly artificial intelligence.\"\n\ndagyumji@heraldcorp.com", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/at-nato-lee-and-carney-look-beyond-seoul-s-failed-submarine-bid", "canonical_source": "https://www.koreaherald.com/article/10801425", "published_at": "2026-07-07 21:21:19+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-07-07 21:33:45.314072+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["artificial-intelligence", "ai-policy"], "entities": ["Lee Jae Myung", "Mark Carney", "Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems", "Hanwha Ocean", "Cheong Wa Dae", "Wi Sung-lac", "NATO"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/at-nato-lee-and-carney-look-beyond-seoul-s-failed-submarine-bid", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/at-nato-lee-and-carney-look-beyond-seoul-s-failed-submarine-bid.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/at-nato-lee-and-carney-look-beyond-seoul-s-failed-submarine-bid.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/at-nato-lee-and-carney-look-beyond-seoul-s-failed-submarine-bid.jsonld"}}