South Korea Considers Arms Support for Ukraine Amid North Korea-Russia Military Cooperation

The President of South Korea, Yoon Seok Yeol, is considering providing weapons to Ukraine, depending on the scale of military cooperation between Russia and North Korea.

This was reported by the Korean Yonhap news agency, citing Yoon Seok Yeol statement after a summit with Polish President Andrzej Duda in Seoul.

"If North Korea dispatches special forces to the Ukraine war, we will provide support to Ukraine step by step and consider taking necessary measures for the security of the Korean Peninsula," Yoon said.

According to South Korea's National Intelligence Service, approximately 3,000 North Korean soldiers are believed to have been deployed to Russia to support its ongoing war in Ukraine, with an estimated 10,000 more expected to be sent by December.

"We have adhered to a principle of not directly supplying lethal weapons, but we can review this more flexibly depending on North Korean military activities," he added.

At the summit, Yoon and Duda condemned North Korea’s deployment of troops as “a blatant violation of the UN Charter and UN Security Council resolutions,” calling it “a provocation that endangers global security far beyond the Korean Peninsula and Europe.

"The Republic of Korea will never sit idle over this and take necessary measures step by step in coordination with the international community depending on the development of North Korea-Russia military cooperation," Yoon said.

On October 14, Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, referenced intelligence reports indicating North Korea's de facto involvement in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

US Defense Secretary, Lloyd Austin, stated on October 23 in Rome that there is evidence of North Korean troops in Russia, marking the first public confirmation from the US in response to multiple reports from Ukraine and South Korea.