A Polish-made suicide drone will be deployed for operational use by the Korean military within this year.

On the 2nd, the military announced at the 'Korea International Defense Industry Exhibition' (KADEX) held at Gyeryongdae emergency runway in Chungnam that it had signed a contract with the Polish manufacturer WB Electronics to introduce the suicide drone 'Warmate'.

The Warmate is scheduled to begin transportation next month and will be deployed to Army operational units and the Drone Operations Command in December. The quantity and purchase price of the contract have not been disclosed. Military authorities have been reviewing the mass introduction of small suicide drones in consideration of North Korea's development and overseas procurement of such drones. While continuing domestic development of suicide drones, they decided to prioritize the introduction of the Warmate, which has gained operational experience in the Ukraine war and can be supplied quickly.

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It was also taken into account that, following the outbreak of the Ukraine war, Poland has been purchasing tens of trillions of won worth of Korean-made weapons such as K9 self-propelled howitzers, K2 tanks, FA-50 fighter jets, and the Chunmoo multiple rocket launcher to respond to security threats.

A Ministry of National Defense official explained the background of purchasing the Polish suicide drone, saying, "Considering the large-scale defense export contracts currently underway with Poland, purchasing UAVs allows us to demonstrate a mutually beneficial relationship rather than a one-sided one, which can help create favorable conditions for future export contracts with Poland."

Seok Jonggeon, Administrator of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, and Pawel Beyda, Deputy Minister of Defense of Poland, along with other attendees, are signing at the contract signing ceremony for the introduction of the Polish suicide drone 'Warmate' held on the 2nd at Gyeryongdae, Chungnam. Photo by Ministry of National Defense

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Previously, in June, the Polish side requested the purchase of their domestically produced suicide drone during a joint committee meeting on defense and defense industry cooperation with Korea. In response, the Ministry of National Defense dispatched working-level officials from the Drone Operations Command and related organizations to Poland in July to verify the Warmate's performance, specifications, and production capacity. The decision to purchase the product was made at the defense policy meeting in August.

The Warmate is a suicide drone supplied by Poland to Ukraine and consists of an airframe (1.6m x 1.1m), warhead, launcher, ground control, and communication equipment. It can be equipped with various warheads, including high-explosive types, and features a pneumatic launcher that fires by bursting a compressed air cartridge.

A Ministry of National Defense official stated, "Representatives from the Army, Drone Operations Command, Agency for Defense Development (ADD), Defense Agency for Technology and Quality, and Defense Acquisition Program Administration all participated and thoroughly verified the product within the possible range," adding, "We believe it is sufficiently valuable for our use, and its quality has been verified (through the Ukraine war)."