Russia says Ukraine's use of South Korean weapons will ‘destroy’ bilateral ties with Seoul

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Russia said on Sunday that the potential use of South Korean weapons by Ukraine in the battlefield will “destroy” bilateral relations between Moscow and Seoul.

“Seoul must be aware that the possible use of South Korean weapons to kill Russian citizens will finally destroy relations between our countries,” Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko told state news agency Tass.

Rudenko argued that South Korea linking its future arms supplies to Ukraine to bilateral cooperation between Russia and North Korea is an approach that could lead to “very negative consequences.”

The deputy foreign minister accused South Korean authorities of “artificially inflating” the topic of the reported deployment of North Korean troops in Russia.

“This, in turn, meets the objectives of the ‘collective West’,” Rudenko said, accusing Western countries of seeking to involve South Korea in efforts to supply arms to Ukraine.

Rudenko said Russia will respond to such a step in "any way we deem necessary,” calling on Seoul to assess the situation and refrain from taking “reckless” steps.

He also accused the US and its allies for deliberately escalating the situation in the Taiwan Strait.

“We see that Washington, in violation of the ‘one China’ principle it recognizes, is strengthening military-political contacts with Taipei under the slogan of maintaining the ‘status quo’ and increasing arms supplies.

“The goal of such obvious US interference in the affairs of the region is to provoke China, and to generate a crisis in Asia to suit its own selfish interests,” he said.