South Korea Agrees to Provide Ukraine With $130 Million Financial Aid

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol meets with Ukraine's first lady Olena Zelenska at the Presidential Office in Seoul, South Korea, on May 16, 2023. The Presidential Office/Handout via Reuters

South Korea has agreed to provide Ukraine with $130 million in financial aid after the Ukrainian first lady requested humanitarian assistance from the government amid the ongoing Russian war in Ukraine.

Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho and his Ukrainian counterpart, Yulia Svyrydenko, signed a preliminary agreement on the package during a meeting in Seoul on May 17, the South Korean Finance Ministry stated.

On the same day, South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin held talks with Ukraine’s first lady, Olena Zelenska, in Seoul. They discussed the situation in Ukraine, which has been impacted by the Russian war since February last year.

Zelenska told Park that her country is in need of ambulances and other equipment to be used for humanitarian purposes on the battlefields, according to South Korea’s Foreign Ministry.

Park said that South Korea would “actively respond to the Ukrainian people’s need for assistance” in the face of the Russian war and provide an additional $130 million in financial aid to the war-hit country.

He added that South Korea would “contribute actively” to the reconstruction of Ukraine through development cooperation.

South Korea provided Ukraine with $100 million in financial aid last year but ruled out supplying lethal aid.

However, during an interview with Reuters last month, President Yoon Suk-yeol suggested that South Korea may consider extending military aid to Ukraine in the event of a “large-scale attack on civilians.”

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks at a press briefing at the White House garden in Washington on April 26, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

“If there is a situation the international community cannot condone, such as any large-scale attack on civilians, massacre, or serious violation of the laws of war, it might be difficult for us to insist only on humanitarian or financial support,” he said.

Yoon said that he believed there should be no limitations on the extent of support provided to defend and restore a country that has been “illegally invaded both under international and domestic law.”

“However, considering our relationship with the parties engaged in the war and developments in the battlefield, we will take the most appropriate measures,” he added.

Russia criticized Yoon for what it perceived as an “unfriendly” stance. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov warned that South Korea supplying weapons to Ukraine “will obliquely mean a certain stage of involvement in this conflict.”

A key U.S. ally and a major producer of artillery ammunition, South Korea has so far tried to avoid antagonizing Russia due to its companies operating there and Moscow’s influence over North Korea, despite mounting pressure from Western countries for weapons supply.

A view of a test launch of a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) Hwasong-18 at an undisclosed location in this still image of a photo used in a video released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) April 14, 2023. KCNA via Reuters

North Korea conducted a series of missile launches this year, including one involving a solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-18, all of which are banned under U.N. Security Council resolutions on North Korea’s missile program.

NATO Seeks South Korea’s Cooperation

Earlier this year, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg visited Seoul and warned that the war in Ukraine “also has ramifications” for the Korean Peninsula.

Stoltenberg said that global security threats were “interconnected” because North Korea was supplying missiles and rockets to Russia, echoing an earlier claim made by the United States.

“There are many areas where we really believe that even stronger partnership between the Republic of Korea and NATO can be a mutual benefit,” he added, referring to South Korea’s official name.

Stoltenberg also met with Yoon and reaffirmed NATO’s commitment to supporting South Korea in its efforts to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula.

Reuters contributed to this report.