Vladimir Putin warned South Korea it would be making “a big mistake” if it arms Ukraine in war against Russia.
His comments come after Seoul said it was considering that possibility, in response to the new pact between Russia and North Korea to help each other in case of “aggression” against any of the countries.
Moscow “…(will) make decisions that probably will not please the current leadership of South Korea” if Seoul decides to supply weapons to kyiv, Putin told reporters on Thursday.
The Russian leader spoke in Vietnam, shortly after a lavish visit to Pyongyang, where he signed a mutual defense agreement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Putin also warned that Moscow is willing to arm Pyongyang if the United States and its allies continue to supply weapons to Ukraine.
“Those who supply these weapons believe that they are not at war with us. I said, even in Pyongyang, that we then reserve the right to supply weapons to other regions of the world,” Putin said.
Seoul had previously condemned the Russia-North Korea deal as a threat to its national security, and national security adviser Chang Ho-jin had said his country planned to “reconsider the issue of arms support for Ukraine.”
Following Putin’s remarks, South Korea’s presidential office said Friday that it would consider “several options” for supplying weapons to Ukraine and that its stance “will depend on how Russia approaches this issue.”
He also summoned the Russian ambassador, Georgy Zinoviev, to protest against the pact, demanding that Moscow “immediately cease” military cooperation with Pyongyang.
While South Korea has provided humanitarian aid and military equipment to Ukraine, it has so far refused to provide lethal weapons as it has an official policy of not arming countries at war.
Some in Ukraine have been hoping that the deepening military collaboration between Moscow and Pyongyang would make Seoul reconsider its approach. Analysts had previously said kyiv would use Putin’s visit to Pyongyang to increase pressure.
During the visit, Kim also pledged “full support” for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. There is increasing evidence that Russia has already been deploying North Korean missiles in Ukraine.
Early Friday, U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby weighed in on the Russia-North Korea deal, saying it should “be of concern to any country that cares about maintaining peace and stability” in the region.
He added that the agreement was “not a surprise” and said the United States had been warning about the “burgeoning defense relationship” between the two countries for many months.
Tokyo said it was “gravely concerned that President Putin did not rule out military technology cooperation with North Korea,” Japanese government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi said, adding that the deal was “unacceptable.”
Analysts have said the treaty could have significant implications for both the world and the region. In addition to the possibility of North Korea openly arming Russia, it could also see Russia intervene in any new conflict on the Korean Peninsula.
The two Koreas are still technically at war and maintain a heavily guarded border, where tensions have worsened in recent weeks.
In a separate incident Thursday, North Korean troops “briefly crossed” the border and withdrew after the South fired warning shots, Seoul authorities said Friday.
This is the third such incident in less than three weeks. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff had said that the two previous cases, on June 9 and June 18, seemed to be involuntary.
Additional reporting by Jean Mackenzie.
