Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin discussed bilateral military exchanges and cooperation in the defense industry with Philippine Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin in Seoul on Monday, officials said.

Gazmin, 68, arrived here Sunday for a four-day schedule.

During his stay here, he is scheduled to visit Seoul National Cemetery, the monument in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi Province, which marks the participation of Filipino troops in the 1950-53 Korean War, and several defense companies.

Gazmin has served as defense chief since June 2010. After retiring as a three-star general in the Philippines’ military in 2000, he had worked as an ambassador to Cambodia from 2002-04.

The Philippines is one of the 21 countries that participated in the fratricidal war in support of South Korea. It dispatched some 7,420 troops for the war, according to government data. Of them, 128 soldiers were killed in action or went missing.

By Song Sang-ho (sshluck@heraldcorp.com)