On June 5, Russian President Vladimir Putin commended South Korea for not directly supplying weapons to Ukraine and expressed readiness to further South Korea-Russia relations.
During a meeting with representatives of major world news agencies ahead of the opening of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Putin said, “We do not detect any anti-Russian sentiment when working with the South Korean government. And there is no supply of weapons to the conflict zone.” He added, “We are very grateful for this.”
He also mentioned his awareness of the United States’ intention to procure weapons to send to Ukraine and that he is monitoring the situation, as reported by the Russian TASS news agency and others.
This is the first time Putin has publicly expressed positive recognition of South Korea’s support for Ukraine.
Putin emphasized, “We hope that South Korea-Russia relations will not deteriorate. We are interested in the development of bilateral relations.” He continued, “Unfortunately, we are currently experiencing negative influence in trade and economic relations, but we hope to maintain the progress achieved in our relations over the past decades, with the possibility of their recovery in the future.”
In the process, Putin also blamed South Korea for creating specific issues in various fields in Korea-Russia relations. He also stated, “We will continue to cooperate with South Korea, but this a decision for the Korean leadership, not us. The channel is open from our side, and we are ready to continue cooperation.”
Regarding North Korea, Putin remarked, “The nuclear issue will be gradually resolved when North Korea no longer feels threatened,” and “North Korea has consistently shown a willingness to negotiate, including with the United States.”
He added that this motivated the talks between Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un.
He also defended North Korea, stating that although it agreed to halt nuclear tests and dismantle test sites, it abandoned nuclear negotiations due to the US violating the agreement.
Concerning the Ukraine war, he predicted that the US would not allow Russia to win because he believed that US leadership would be damaged if Russia won.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that he would step down after the spring of 2025 and claimed that Western countries have already selected ‘several candidates’ to replace him. Zelensky predicted that he would remain president only until his final task of lowering the conscription age to 18 was completed.
Putin denied reports that Russia is planning to attack NATO as completely false but emphasized Russia’s nuclear doctrine.
He stated, “We can use all means at our disposal if someone threatens our sovereignty and territory. This should not be taken lightly or superficially.” Putin emphasized that Russia can use nuclear weapons at any time if it is attacked.
He also warned that if the West allows Ukraine to use the missiles they provided to attack the Russian mainland, Russia will deploy advanced long-range missiles in third countries in the same way.
Regarding Japan, Putin said, “We see that Japan is involved in the Ukraine crisis,” and took a firm stance, saying, “We will not engage in talks with Japan unless it changes its position on Ukraine.”
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