Moscow, February 21 Russia warned South Korea on Saturday against supplying arms to Ukraine under a NATO-sponsored program, as the war between the two powerful republics of the former USSR is nearing its fourth year.
"We would like to reiterate that any potential participation by the Republic of Korea in such supplies, in any form, direct or indirect, only delays the prospects for resolving the conflict," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said.
She warned that Moscow would be forced to take retaliatory measures, including asymmetric ones, if Seoul participates in the PURL (Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List) program.
NATO established the PURL program in 2025 in response to a US decision to stop providing weapons to Ukraine for free. Under the program, Kyiv formulates its military needs, while the EU allocates funds, purchases the weapons from the United States, and provides them to Ukraine for free.
"This will undoubtedly cause irreparable damage to relations between Russia and the Republic of Korea and destroy the prospects for restoring constructive dialogue on the Korean peninsula. In this case, we will be forced to use our right to retaliate, including asymmetric measures," Zakharova added.
Zakharova noted that Moscow was surprised to hear reports about Seoul's possible participation in this program, as such steps would be at odds with the country's official policy of non-participation.
She noted that South Korean officials had repeatedly stated this on several occasions, and Moscow appreciates this approach, considering it as a necessary basis for preventing further collapse of Russian-South Korean relations and prerequisites for the future restoration of bilateral dialogue and cooperation.
Even as peace talks with Ukraine, with US mediation, continue, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is reported to have presented his three-year plan to fight Russia and regain lost territories.
Moscow, which launched its special military operation on February 24, 2022, has dim hopes of a peace agreement, as the so-called Coalition of the Willing of the UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Poland have reiterated their continued support for Ukraine and seek the Kremlin's strategic defeat.