Senior NATO official: S. Korea persists to refuse arms supplies to Ukraine

NATO Military Committee Chair Rob Bauer said that South Korean Defense Minister Suh Wook and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Won In-choul reiterated to him, on Tuesday, that Seoul will not supply Ukraine with "lethal weapons".

Bauer arrived in South Korea on Saturday for a four-day visit.

At the Polish Embassy in Seoul, Bauer told reporters that "I know that South Korea is doing a lot already in terms of normally thought aid, and humanitarian aid and financial help. I think that is extremely important for Ukraine, and I hope that will continue also with, of course, the incoming government," as cited by South Korean news agency Yonhap.

In terms of military assistance, Bauer stated that both Suh and Won told him in separate meetings that Seoul is still hesitant to send Ukraine lethal weapons, as quoted in the report.

If South Korea does decide to provide "lethal weapons" to Ukraine, it should also train the Ukrainian military "to ensure that the weapon system can be used," according to Bauer.

It is worth mentioning that Volodymyr Zelensky urged South Korea to send Ukraine weapons, despite the fact that the South Korean Defense Minister told his Ukrainian counterpart in a phone call last Friday that Seoul would be unable to do so, citing its own security needs amid Korean Peninsula tensions as an excuse.