President Yoon Suk-yeol said no lethal military aid had been sent to Kyiv after the Russian president warned of damaged relations.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol denied that Seoul provided any lethal weapons to Ukraine after Russian President Vladimir Putin said such a decision would destroy their bilateral relations.
Putin made remarks at a conference in Moscow on Thursday, accused the West of inciting war in Ukraine and stressed that South Korea’s decision to supply Ukraine with weapons would destroy relations, seeing it as a move Moscow sends weapons to North Korea.
“We provided humanitarian and peaceful assistance to Ukraine in solidarity with the international community but never with lethal weapons or anything like that,” Yoon told reporters on Thursday. Six, according to South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency.
“But in any case, it is a matter of our sovereignty and I want you to know that we are trying to maintain a peaceful and good relationship with all countries in the world, including Russia,” he said.
Seoul sent bulletproof vests, helmets and other non-lethal equipment as well as medical supplies to Ukraine and refused Kyiv’s request for weapons, Yonhap reported.
(LEAD) Yoon says North Korea has never supplied lethal weapons to Ukraine https://t.co/x2JN1WRAj8
– Yonhap News Agency (@YonhapNews) October 28, 2022
An ally of the United States, South Korea has maintain it will not give Ukraine with deadly aid and has sought to avoid harming Russia, both for economic reasons and for the influence Moscow could have on North Korea.
Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, which began eight months ago, has killed thousands, displaced millions, rocked the global economy and ushered in Cold War-era divisions.
At a conference in Moscow on Thursday, Putin defended his war and blame the US and the West for inciting the conflict in Ukraine, adding that the West was playing what he described as a “dangerous, bloody and dirty” geopolitical game. sowing chaos all over the world.
Putin sent this message to South Korea: “How will South Korea react to reality if we start, if we resume cooperation with North Korea in this area?”
When asked what he would like to say to people in Europe and America, Putin replied that they should know that Russia is not their enemy.
“Russia is your friend and we have been doing everything for decades and are ready to do anything in the future to strengthen our relationship,” he said.
Putin also criticized US intervenes in China’s dispute with Taiwanwhich he called “contrary to common sense and logic”.
