00:00Recently, Ukraine has repeatedly crossed the line.
00:02Now, Ukraine's former foreign minister is strongly criticizing Korea,
00:05claiming Korea's God will judge the country for not sending weapons.
00:09Dmitry Kuleba, the former Ukrainian foreign minister, actually said that.
00:13Former foreign minister Kuleba stated that Russia believes it will be difficult for Ukraine
00:17to improve its ballistic missile defense capabilities in a short period of time,
00:20so it is reducing the production of other weapons and investing significant resources
00:24into the production of ballistic missiles.
00:25He also revealed that Russia is even importing missiles from North Korea
00:30and using those missiles to attack Ukraine.
00:32But here, he criticized South Korea, saying that South Korea is still turning its back on Ukraine
00:36and not providing weapons support, and even said that South Korea's God will judge South Korea.
00:41Of course, former Ukrainian foreign minister Kuleba only served as foreign minister until 2024
00:46and does not currently hold any official position in the Ukrainian government.
00:49Ukraine continues to put strong pressure on South Korea.
00:52On August 9th, President Zelensky of Ukraine publicly stated that he wants to directly request
00:56anti-aircraft systems from South Korea.
00:58Of course, Ukraine has previously questioned why South Korea provides air defense systems
01:03such as the Cheongong system to the UN, the UAE, and other Middle Eastern countries, but not to them.
01:08However, it is unusual for President Zelensky of Ukraine to directly single out South Korea in this way.
01:13The South Korean government reiterated that under domestic law,
01:16it cannot supply defense materials to conflict zones and thus rejected Ukraine's request.
01:21President Zelensky of Ukraine keeps bringing up North Korea and pressuring South Korea.
01:26President Zelensky warned that as more North Korean troops gain combat experience in Russia,
01:30South Korea faces greater risk.
01:32He also spread baseless rumors that South Korean and Ukrainian diplomats were in contact about weapons support.
01:38Ukrainian media keep reporting as if the South Korean government has abandoned Ukraine,
01:42and previously released Ukrainian government materials are gaining renewed attention.
01:47On April 13th, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry's main Directorate of Intelligence announced that memory
01:52semiconductor components produced by Samsung Electronics were found inside a Russian reconnaissance drone.
01:57In the released photos, you can see that a component with a Samsung Electronics identification label
02:01is installed in the flight control device.
02:03The Ukrainian side analyzed the component and classified it as Samsung's DDR3 DRAM and 8GBB eMMC 5.1 memory.
02:10In particular, DDR3 DRAM is an old type of memory that has been commercially available since 2007.
02:16Since these are general-purpose components that are far from cutting-edge semiconductors,
02:20this fact alone is not enough to conclude that Samsung Electronics was directly involved in the production of Russian military
02:25equipment.
02:26We need to distinguish between the presence of the semiconductors and their distribution channels.
02:31The materials from Ukrainian authorities did not specify when these components were made,
02:37when they entered Russia, or which companies distributed them.
02:40No evidence was released showing Samsung Electronics directly supplied these components to Russia,
02:45or broke export controls.
02:47It's also possible that recycled components from other electronics or inventory from overseas markets ended up in Russia.
02:54We can't rule out that these parts may have reached Russia via intermediaries in third countries.
02:59Still, Ukraine highlights that Russian weapons used Samsung semiconductors.
03:03They go around talking as if Korea is supporting Russia.
03:06Even if they don't say it directly, they keep highlighting only that part.
03:10Since the Ukraine war began in 2022,
03:12Korea has maintained its policy of not directly supplying lethal weapons.
03:16Even during the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, often seen as the most likely to act,
03:20lethal aid to Ukraine was discussed,
03:22but actual support was limited to non-lethal safety gear like mine detectors and mine clearing equipment.
03:28While Korea has continued to provide humanitarian and reconstruction support to Ukraine,
03:32it has maintained a clear line against directly supplying lethal weapons.
03:35However, there is a separate controversy surrounding 155mm artillery shells.
03:40This is because Korea sold or leased shells to the United States,
03:44and the United States then provided its own ammunition to Ukraine.
03:48This method led to Korean-made shells reaching Ukraine,
03:51but it's not the same as the Korean government directly supplying lethal weapons.
03:55Korea has taken a cautious stance between direct and indirect ammunition support,
04:00balancing security cooperation with the United States
04:03and its domestic and international considerations.
04:06Ukraine is now asking Korea for air defense systems
04:09because Russia's ongoing ballistic missile, cruise missile, and drone attacks
04:13are straining Ukraine's air defenses.
04:15Ukraine uses Western-backed air defenses,
04:18but continues to face shortages of interceptor missiles.
04:21On top of that, due to the Middle East war,
04:23a significant number of Korea's air defense missiles have been depleted,
04:26so the number of air defense missiles going to Ukraine has decreased even further.
04:30Various interception methods are being used against drones,
04:32but for threats like ballistic missiles that are fast and have a short response time,
04:36high-performance air defense systems and a sufficient number of interceptors are needed.
04:40Ukraine is interested in Korea's Cheunggong series and other air defense systems.
04:44Additionally, Ukraine is offering new cooperation in drones.
04:49Ukraine has gained significant practical experience in drone use,
04:52production, and countering electronic warfare during the ongoing war.
04:55President Zelensky requested support from Korea for air defense systems
04:59and said Ukraine is ready to cooperate on drones.
05:02If Ukraine shares its technology and experience
05:04and Korea supplies air defense systems and technologies,
05:07this could create mutual military cooperation instead of one-sided aid.
05:11The problem is that, from Korea's perspective, accepting such requests is quite burdensome.
05:16In particular, there is ongoing dissatisfaction within the country regarding Ukraine's diplomatic approach.
05:21Even though Korea is already providing humanitarian aid and reconstruction support,
05:25if Ukraine publicly demands weapons support and appears to pressure Korea's existing policies,
05:30the Korean public may find it uncomfortable.
05:32If the country in the war is seen as demanding support
05:35without considering another nation's security, laws, or policy limits,
05:40resentment will grow.
05:42It's understandable that Ukraine is seeking international support.
05:45Without air defense systems during ongoing war,
05:48civilian casualties and infrastructure damage could rise.
05:51However, how support is requested is also a key diplomatic factor.
05:55Explaining why the other country can't directly supply weapons
05:58and highlighting the security and technology benefits Korea gains from working with Ukraine
06:02may be more effective.
06:04Since there are legal and security constraints on the scope and manner in which Korea can help Ukraine,
06:08continued pressure that ignores these conditions
06:10could actually have a negative impact on public opinion within Korea regarding support for Ukraine.
06:16Korea's ties with Russia are also a practical reason for not sending lethal weapons to Ukraine.
06:21If Korea directly provides weapons to Ukraine,
06:24Russia may perceive this as a significant shift in Korea's policy toward Russia.
06:28Until now, Korea has supported Ukraine while carefully avoiding actions
06:32that could lead to direct military conflict with Russia.
06:35Directly providing lethal weapons could be seen as going far beyond this standard.
06:39Korea is especially worried about Russia and North Korea's military cooperation.
06:43If Russia strongly opposes Korea sending weapons to Ukraine
06:46and increases military ties with North Korea,
06:49Korea's security could worsen.
06:51If military technology, equipment, or cooperation in training,
06:55reconnaissance, and intelligence is given to North Korea,
06:57South Korea may face a direct burden.
07:00How much technology Russia can provide to help North Korea advance its missile
07:03and nuclear capabilities is a sensitive issue for South Korea's security.
07:07Military technologies are already being supported, but this could get worse.
07:11They could provide various missile technologies and military weapons to North Korea.
07:15There could also be even more support in terms of food and resources than there is now.
07:19For South Korea, this situation itself could pose a security threat.
07:23Therefore, the current South Korean diplomatic authorities have determined that the harm caused by Russia
07:28supporting North Korea outweighs the benefits of supporting Ukraine,
07:31so they are refraining from providing lethal weapons.
07:33In particular, there are concerns that the North Korean military is accumulating modern warfare experience
07:38through the war involving Russia.
07:39If Russian support is further expanded in this situation, the problem could become even bigger.
07:43If North Korea gets satellite, reconnaissance, electronic warfare, drone tech, or missile operation experience from Russia,
07:50the threat level for the South Korean military could change.
07:53Even if South Korea gains diplomatic and military advantages by supplying weapons to Ukraine,
07:58we must consider that Russia-North Korea military cooperation could deepen as a result.
08:03Therefore, from the perspective of the South Korean government,
08:06it is not simply a matter of deciding whether to help Ukraine.
08:08They must determine how much support they can give without provoking more Russia-North Korea military cooperation
08:14while still protecting South Korea's security.
08:16South Korea's reluctance to supply lethal weapons also reflects a practical judgment that,
08:20apart from its willingness to support Ukraine,
08:22it must manage possible security consequences on the Korean peninsula.
08:26If relations with Russia worsen, it may become harder for South Korean companies
08:30to operate or do business there once the war is over.
08:33If Russia goes beyond diplomatic responses and chooses measures such as regulations
08:37or market access restrictions on South Korean companies,
08:40there could also be economic costs.
08:42South Korea must weigh the military benefits of helping Ukraine
08:45against possible diplomatic and economic fallout from straining relations with Russia.
Comments