Military aid to Ukraine from South Korea will depend on Russia’s actions – president’s office

Any decision to provide lethal aid to Ukraine in its war with the Russian Federation would depend on the actions of the Kremlin.

Rubryka reports, says the Office of the President of South Korea.

Rubryka reports, citing Yonhap, that the statement comes following President Yoon Suk Yeol's interview for Reuters, where he assumed that his government's aid might go beyond humanitarian or financial assistance.

"The president's words were a response to common sense and principles,"  the president's representative said. "The Russian authorities comment on what is not happening, but we can think about it the other way around: what we will do in the future will depend on Russia's actions."

According to the official, Yoon Suk Yeol meant a hypothetical situation when everyone in the international community considers the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine serious.

"He put it in hypothetical terms, how can South Korea sit back and watch in such a hypothetical situation?" he said.

The representative noted that the content of Seoul's aid to Ukraine has not changed, although the South Korean legislation would not prohibit the supply of weapons to a country in a state of war.

"The reason why we do not take such actions voluntarily is that we want to simultaneously and in a balanced way fulfill the tasks of stable support and management of South Korean-Russian relations and at the same time actively join the ranks of the international community in protecting the freedom of the Ukrainian people," he said. 

The official recalled that the "free world" came to the aid of South Korea when it was almost wiped off the face of the earth during the Korean War of 1950-53.

As was reported earlier, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol recently told Reuters that Seoul may expand its support to Ukrainians, going beyond humanitarian and economic aid, "if Ukraine suffers a large-scale attack on civilians."

The statement shifted Seoul's previous position against military aid, for the first time, declaring its readiness to provide weapons to Ukraine. More than a year ago, they couldn't provide lethal assistance.

After that, Moscow threatened Seoul that it might arm the DPRK in response. However, an unnamed South Korean official said during the briefing that South Korea still does not supply weapons to Ukraine to "maintain stable relations with Russia."