Russia ‘deeply regrets’ South Korean president's statement on its ties with Pyongyang

By Esra Tekin

ISTANBUL (AA) – Russia’s embassy in Seoul expressed "deep regret" Thursday over South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's speech at the UN General Assembly in which he condemned Moscow’s military cooperation with Pyongyang.

The embassy said the collaboration was being targeted by a propaganda effort initiated by Washington and subsequently promoted by the US and South Korean media in an attempt to undermine its credibility.

“We regard such speculative and baseless statements made in the ‘best’ traditions of ‘megaphone’ diplomacy and the methods of the notorious false ‘vial’ of the former US Secretary of State C. Powell as provocative and confrontational, in line with the aggressive hybrid war unleashed against our country by the collective West led by the US,” it said in a statement on its official Facebook page.

It said that Russia consistently adheres to all its international commitments, including those concerning the advancement of relations with its close neighbor and “long-time partner" North Korea.

It urged the South Korean leadership, with whom Russia has a "history of constructive communication and collaboration, to make decisions based on a clear and unbiased evaluation of the present circumstances.”

"It is essential to consider the adverse impacts of Seoul's ongoing pursuit of an anti-Russian stance on both Russian-South Korean relations and the overall situation on the Korean Peninsula," it added.

Yoon told the ongoing UN General Assembly in New York on Wednesday that any arms deal between North Korea and Russia would be tantamount to a “direct provocation” against Seoul.

“It is paradoxical that a permanent member of the UN Security Council…would wage war, invading another sovereign nation and receive arms and ammunition from a regime that blatantly violates UN Security Council resolutions,” he said, referring to Russia’s war on Ukraine.

In such a situation, he added, the call to reform the UN Security Council would “receive broad support.”

Yoon said if Pyongyang “acquires information and technology necessary to enhance its WMD (weapons of mass destruction) capabilities in exchange for supporting Russia with conventional weapons, the deal will be a direct provocation, threatening the peace and security of not only Ukraine but also the Republic of Korea.”

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un returned to Pyongyang on Tuesday after paying a weeklong trip to Russia.

Seoul and its allies will "not stand idly by," Yoon said, adding: "We can deter any unlawful provocation."