(Seoul) South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol promised on Saturday to “increase the scale” of his humanitarian aid and non-lethal military assistance to Ukraine, after meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv.
Seoul “will increase the scale of support given last year, when we provided materials such as helmets and bulletproof vests,” Yoon Suk Yeol said. His country’s humanitarian aid to Ukraine will increase to $150 million in 2023 from $100 million in 2022, he added.
South Korea, the world’s ninth-largest arms exporter, sent humanitarian aid to Ukraine and also sold tanks and howitzers to Poland, a key Kyiv ally against Russian forces.
However, the Asian country has a long-standing policy of not supplying arms to regions in conflict, despite repeated pleas from the United States, European allies and Ukraine itself for more aid. important.
South Korea, which remains technically at war with nuclear-armed North Korea, produces large volumes of weapons compatible with NATO weaponry, including tanks, howitzers and ammunition highly sought after shells.
SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENCY PHOTO VIA AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife Kim Keon-hee gather in front of a memorial in Boucha.
During his surprise visit to Ukraine, the South Korean president visited the town of Boutcha, the scene of a massacre of civilians attributed to the Russian army, before meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart.
“Ukraine today reminds me of South Korea of old,” said Yoon Suk Yeol, hailing the international aid that had enabled his country to “achieve a miraculous victory” over the North and become the one of the world’s leading economies.
SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENCY PHOTO VIA AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol looks at photos of fallen Ukrainian soldiers during his visit to Boucha on July 15.
Seoul has hinted it may reconsider its policy of not supplying lethal weapons, as the president’s office indicated earlier this year that a large-scale Russian attack on civilians could be a game-changer.
In May, South Korea denied US media reports of future deliveries of shells to Ukraine, saying its decision not to deliver lethal weapons to Kyiv remained unchanged.
Experts point out, however, that South Korea is in a difficult position due to its economic ties with Russia (its 15e trading partner in 2022) as well as Moscow’s influence over North Korea.