10/24/2024October 24, 2024Seoul hints it could ‘review’ potentially sending Ukraine weapons
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has warned that Seoul “won’t sit idle” over North Korea’s reported movement of troops into Russia for possible deployment in Russia’s war in Ukraine.
On Wednesday, US National Security Adviser John Kirby told a White House press briefing that at least 3,000 North Korean soldiers have been moved into eastern Russia between early and mid-October.
“We dont’ know whether these soldiers will enter into combat alongside the Russian military, but this is certainly a highly concerning probability,” Kirby said.
South Korea is one of the world’s top weapons exporters, but Seoul has long resisted calls from the US and others to supply Ukraine with weapons.
However, on Thursday, Seoul said it would “review” potentially supplying Ukraine with weapons. Yoon said Thursday that South Korea would “take necessary actions in cooperation with the international community.”
“While we have maintained a principle of not directly supplying lethal weapons, we may review this more flexibly depending on the actions of North Korean forces,” he told a press conference after meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda on Thursday in Seoul.
Yoon and Duda met to discuss strategic ties and finalize a new contract to export South Korean K-2 tanks to Poland by the end of the year.
Both leaders condemned the deployment of North Korean troops to Russia saying it presented a global threat.
“We agreed that North Korea’s troop deployment to Russia, which is in direct violation of the UN charter and UN Security Council resolutions, is a provocation that threatens global security,” Yoon said after the talks.
South Korean lawmakers on Wednesday said that North Korea has already sent 3,000 troops to Russia citing information from national intelligence, adding that 10,000 were expected to be in Russia by December.