Ukraine’s first lady, Olena Zelenska, met with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday to request non-lethal military assistance, comparing humanitarian support to “something and used the visit to Seoul to stress the need for “radicalisation”. ,
Ms. Zelenska thanked Mr. Yoon for the humanitarian and economic help that South Korea has already provided and asked for non-lethal military equipment, including equipment for mine detection and removal, Mr. Yoon’s office Lee Doo-woon, a spokesman for the
Ms. Zelenska said Wire that he and other Ukrainian officials including First Deputy Prime Minister, Yulia Svirdenko, also discussed Ukraine’s need for stronger air-defense systems.
Mr Yoon vowed that South Korea would coordinate with NATO and other countries to “actively support the Ukrainian people”, his spokesman said, but did not give specific details on what that would require.
Seoul has so far resisted calls to send it artillery shells For Ukrainian forces, who need more ammunition ahead of a long-awaited counteroffensive intended to recapture Russian-held territory. Mr. Yun indicated for the first time only last month that Seoul may be willing to consider sending military aid to Kiev. reuters It would be particularly difficult to emphasize humanitarian or financial assistance in the event of a large-scale attack on civilians.
The South Korean president’s turnaround on the matter was “a wise decision,” Ms Zelenska said in a statement to Yonhap news agency. Interview Published Tuesday.
“Indeed, when there is a criminal in the home, the owners clearly need not only humanitarian aid, food and medicine, but something much more radical to flush out the criminal,” she said, calmly was possible only through a Ukrainian victory. Not through a conversation with a “killer who has no remorse”.
Since becoming wartime first lady, Ms. Zelenska has become a prominent ambassador for her husband’s administration, championing mental health reform and children’s welfare while traveling to Kiev to advocate for support from allies. Earlier this month, she met UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in London before attending the coronation of King Charles III.