A senior U.S. defense official visited Hanwha Ocean’s Geoje Shipyard in South Korea on 16 September 2026, as the United States considers South Korea’s Chungnam-class frigate among options for its frigate fleet.
George LeMoure, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for East Asia, toured the Geoje facility while in South Korea for the 29th Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogues. The three-day meeting was being held in Busan from 16 to 18 September 2026.
LeMoure reportedly visited the shipyard with officials from South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense. The visit focused on defense industry cooperation between South Korea and the United States.
Hanwha Ocean is building the fifth and sixth Chungnam-class frigates at Geoje Shipyard. The Chungnam class, also known as Ulsan-class Batch III, has a light displacement of 3,600 tonnes. The frigate measures 129 m in length, 14.8 m in width and 38.9 m in height.
Compared with the earlier Incheon-class Batch I and Daegu-class Batch II frigates, the Chungnam class has stronger anti-aircraft and anti-submarine capabilities.
The U.S. military is considering the Chungnam-class frigate and Japan’s Mogami-class frigate for possible direct purchases as it seeks to replenish its frigate force more quickly.
LeMoure’s visit came one week after Acting U.S. Secretary of the Navy Hung Kao toured Hanwha Ocean’s Philly Shipyard on 9 September 2026.
The Geoje visit also took place as attention focuses on MASGA, a Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation project.
