July 16, 2023

Contrary to usual practice, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol made a high-profile pledge on Saturday to "expand the scale" of his country's military assistance to Ukraine during his sudden visit to Ukraine, an indication that he has decided to side with the US-led NATO amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Chinese observers said. They warned that such one-sidedness and a more conservative South Korean administration would bring subtle changes in the political pattern of Northeast Asia.

Yoon made an unannounced visit to Ukraine on Saturday at the end of a trip that earlier took him to Lithuania for the NATO Summit and then to Poland for an official visit, according to South Korean media outlet Yonhap News Agency.

During the visit to Kiev for a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Yoon said in a press conference that South Korea plans to provide "a larger scale of military supplies" to Ukraine this year, following last year's provision of non-lethal supplies such as body armor and helmets. He did not give more details, Reuters reported on Saturday.

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