The Foreign Ministry promised Moscow's response in case Seoul supplies weapons to Kiev

Russia will respond if South Korea transfers its weapons to Ukraine, such a move by Seoul would damage its relations with Moscow. This was stated by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko on November 24.

"Seoul should be aware that the possible use of South Korean weapons to kill Russian citizens will finally bring down relations between our countries. Of course, we will react in all ways we deem necessary," Rudenko told TASS.

He noted that such a move is unlikely to improve the security of the Republic of Korea. The deputy minister urged Seoul to carefully assess the situation and not to take "reckless" steps. Rudenko hopes that the South Korean leadership will base its decisions on long-term national interests rather than on short-term opportunistic considerations that are handed to it from the outside.

Rudenko pointed out earlier in the day that the collective West is trying to drag Seoul into allying with Kiev and pumping arms into it, making South Korea an accomplice to the Ukrainian leadership's crimes.

Russian Ambassador to the Republic of Korea Georgy Zinoviev said on Oct. 24 that South Korean deliveries of lethal weapons to Ukraine would not change the course of the special military operation, but would ruin the prospect of restoring relations between Moscow and Seoul.

Prior to that, on June 5, Russian President Vladimir Putin drew attention to the fact that South Korea had not yet provided direct assistance to Ukraine, but was already involved in the conflict. The head of state added that the South Korean side had created a number of problems in the cooperation between Moscow and Seoul. Nevertheless, Putin expects that the level of relations between the two countries achieved in the past decades will be preserved to become a foundation for restoring cooperation.

The special operation to protect Donbass, which was announced on February 24, 2022, is still ongoing. The decision to conduct it was taken against the background of the aggravation of the situation in the region due to shelling by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.