Putin says arming Ukraine would be "a big mistake" for South Korea

On Thursday, President Vladimir Putin declared that South Korea would be making “a big mistake” if it chose to arm Ukraine, and that Moscow would punish Seoul severely for such a decision.

Speaking at a press conference in Vietnam, Putin was responding to a Yonhap News story earlier on Thursday that stated that, following the signing of a mutual defence treaty by Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un the previous day, South Korea would consider providing weapons to Ukraine.

Putin stated that Seoul should not be concerned about the agreement between Moscow and North Korea.

According to Reuters, Putin told reporters “South Korea, the Republic of Korea has nothing to worry about because our military assistance under the treaty we signed only arises if aggression is carried out against one of the signatories. As far as I know, the Republic of Korea is not planning aggression against the DPRK (North Korea,”

He sent a warning to Seoul not to provide weapons to Kiev.

Putin said “As for the supply of lethal weapons to the war zone in Ukraine, that would be a very big mistake,”

“I hope that this will not happen. And if it does happen, then we will also take appropriate decisions, which are unlikely to please the current leadership of South Korea,”

After a two-day tour to Asia, the Russian leader was speaking to reporters in Vietnam. A day earlier, he had meetings in North Korea.

(Source: Reuters)