Hyundai Rotem’s armored vehicle family, led by the K2 main battle tank, has become the first South Korean defense product line to earn NATO AQAP-2110 certification. The Allied Quality Assurance Publications (AQAP)-2110 standard verifies that defense manufacturers maintain NATO-compliant quality management processes throughout product design and production. Achieving the certification represents an important milestone, as it serves as a key qualification for supplying military equipment to NATO nations and strengthens Hyundai Rotem’s prospects in upcoming alliance procurement opportunities.
The AQAP-2110 certification applies to the company’s K2 tanks, armored recovery vehicles, and combat engineering systems, with plans to broaden its scope to additional defense platforms. The achievement also supports South Korea’s expanding K-Defense export strategy in Europe, where demand continues to grow thanks to Korean systems’ compatibility with NATO equipment, fast delivery schedules, cost-effectiveness, and flexible technology transfer arrangements. Hyundai Rotem gained significant momentum after Poland agreed to acquire up to 1,000 K2 tanks, including domestic production, and received the first vehicles within three months of signing the agreement in August 2022. In parallel, Hanwha Aerospace has expanded its European presence through K239 Chunmoo rocket system contracts with Estonia, Norway, and Poland, alongside a joint venture with WB Electronics to locally produce Chunmoo missiles.
