One of the most influential people attending the NATO summit leads a country that is not a member. Yet it holds vast stores of weapons sought by the bloc to help Ukraine fight off Russia, and perhaps tip the battle in Kyiv’s favor.
Ukraine needs artillery shells. South Korea has millions and there is a push to convince its President Yoon Suk Yeol to change a government policy that prohibits Seoul from sending lethal aid to countries at war.
Yoon is attending the North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit this week for the third time but this visit is different. Just weeks before it opened, his government said a defense pact signed between Russia and North Korea in June has made it consider whether it’s time to start sending weapons to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s forces.
Zelenskiy, who has been seeking weapons from South Korea since Russia’s full-scale invasion started in 2022, will be attending the summit in Washington aimed at proving that NATO is as strong as ever in its 75th year. He is expected to speak at a meeting of the Indo-Pacific Four partners — Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea — the Yomiuri newspaper reported, where he could again lay out his case for weapons.
“The types of weapons South Korea can provide Ukraine are the ones that can make breakthroughs in the current stalemate on the front lines,” said Park Won Gon, a professor at South Korea’s Ewha Womans University, specializing in international relations.
Apart from the appeals from Zelenskiy, leaked intelligence obtained by the New York Times last year indicates Washington has been seeking to have Yoon send artillery to help Ukraine. Yoon’s aides were worried about pressure from US President Joe Biden, a document showed, and the Yoon government has denied the claims.
Congress finally approved $61 billion in funding in April, helping shift the balance of firepower, but the US and its European partners still need to ramp up their ability to make artillery shells.
The European Union missed a pledge to provide Ukraine with 1 million rounds of artillery by end-March and any munitions from South Korea could help fill shortfalls. Ukraine is estimated to need at least 200,000 rounds a month.
An unnamed senior NATO official said anything that South Korea provides to help Ukraine defend itself would be welcome, Yonhap News agency reported.
South Korea has 155 millimeter artillery shells that are the NATO standard used by Ukraine. The stock is estimated to be at over 3 million shells, Yonhap reported.
Seoul may be less worried now about drawing down its inventory after seeing North Korea sending to Russia what Yoon’s government believes could be nearly 5 million shells. These arms transfers translated into Kyiv’s troops being outgunned by as much as 10-1 by President Vladimir Putin’s forces as military aid to Ukraine was delayed in the US Congress this year.
South Korea could also consider sending 105 mm artillery shells, which have less range but are fired from howitzers that are lighter and more mobile, the Center for Strategic & International Studies said in a report in March. South Korea has as many as 3.4 million shells that can be used by Ukraine, it said.
Meanwhile, countries bordering Russia have been buying weapons from the likes of South Korea’s leading defense contractor Hanwha Aerospace Co. Its tanks and howitzers are seen as less expensive than those from US makers and able to defeat Russian systems. The company signed a deal worth nearly $1 billion to sell 54 K9 howitzers and other military supplies to Romania, South Korea’s arms procurement agency said Wednesday.
Yoon has said any decision on sending weapons would depend on Russia’s action. Lawmaker Kim Gunn, who served under Yoon as a chief nuclear envoy until February, said the threat to supply arms to Ukraine is leverage to deter Russia from providing military support to North Korea.
Officials in Seoul have indicated a red line would be material, particularly technology that enhances Kim’s ability to make weapons of mass destruction. Putin has said he can’t exclude providing Kim with high-precision weapons in response to Western military assistance for Ukraine.
“From Seoul’s point of view, Russia’s cooperation with North Korea is a direct threat to its national security,” said Rachel Minyoung Lee, a senior fellow with the 38 North Program at the Stimson Center. She said it not only aids in advancing North Korea’s weapons development but helps Pyongyang “manage and even improve its national economy by reviving the munitions industry.”
Lee, who worked as an analyst for the CIA’s Open Source Enterprise, said South Korea has been able to deflect pressure by promoting other ways to contribute to NATO, such cyber security, and Seoul should move cautiously.
“Direct provision of weapons to Ukraine is a major step, and that decision should be made based on South Korea’s national interest, which should also take into consideration its longer-term interest vis-a-vis Russia,” she said.
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Zelenskiy Urges NATO to Help Kyiv Now, Before the US Election
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged NATO allies to act decisively in helping his country repel Russia’s invasion instead of “waiting for November” in an oblique reference to the US presidential election.
Speaking at the start of a three-day summit of the alliance’s leaders in Washington on Tuesday, Zelenskiy called on the US to take further steps in allowing his military to hit targets, including air bases, inside Russia and assist the country with deep-strike capabilities in Crimea.
“It’s time to step out of the shadows, to make strong decisions work, to act and not to wait for November or any other month,” Zelenskiy said at the Reagan Institute in Washington. “To this end, we must be strong and uncompromising. All together. And first of all America.”
The firm tone of the address underscores the sense of urgency that Ukraine is feeling with the war well into its third year and the prospect of Donald Trump’s returning to the White House following the election.
The presumptive Republican presidential candidate has decried the billions of dollars spent on Ukraine’s defense and has boasted that he’ll end the war by the time he’s inaugurated in January. Zelenskiy challenged Trump to present the plan on how to end the conflict in a Bloomberg TV interview last week, warning any proposal must avoid violating his nation’s sovereignty.
Why Russia-Ukraine War Is So Hard to Win, and How It Might End
Earlier on Tuesday, NATO allies promised five long-range air-defense systems for Ukraine, part of a push to counter a stepped-up Russian campaign of missile strikes. In a summit statement this week, the alliance is expected to offer Kyiv an “irreversible” path to membership, provided it makes necessary reforms meant to clean up corruption.
Zelenskiy signaled the move will fall short after his country has long hoped to receive an invitation to join the alliance.
“For 75 years, Europeans could be confident that no matter the friction within the alliance – no one, when talking to Russia, would trade the membership of European nations,” he said. “But why does Moscow hope for this now? And why do the words ‘Ukraine is a NATO member’ cause more fear not in Moscow?”
He urged the US to show leadership so that “our enemies such as” Russian President Vladimir Putin “fear our actions,” Zelenskiy said. “Don’t wait months — America can be great every day.”
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Zelenskiy says he can't predict Trump's actions if elected
"If people of America will vote for Donald Trump, I hope that his policy with Ukraine will not change. I don't know very well him. I don't know. I had meetings with him and we had good meetings when he was the president... but we didn't (go) through the war with him. And only during a war you can understand if you can count on someone or not."
:: "I hope that the United States will never go out from NATO, otherwise the world will lose a lot of countries, a lot of countries, because of such people like Putin, we will lose a lot of small countries which count on America in NATO, which count on U.S. leadership. It's not my decision, I'm just sharing my thoughts."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged U.S. political leaders in Washington on Tuesday not to wait for the outcome of America's November presidential election to move forcefully to aid his country against Russia's invasion.
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Biden promises new air defenses for Ukraine in forceful Nato speech
Joe Biden has announced that Nato countries will provide Ukraine with five new strategic air defense systems as leaders began a summit in Washington where the alliance was expected to declare Ukraine’s path toward Nato to be “irreversible”.
The promise of weapons deliveries, including anti-air defenses sought after by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy, came just a day after a deadly missile strike against a paediatric cancer hospital and other civilian targets in Ukraine that Biden called a “horrific reminder of Russia’s brutality”.
“All told, Ukraine will receive hundreds of additional interceptors over the next year, helping protect Ukrainian cities against Russian missiles and Ukrainian troops facing their attacks on the frontlines,” said Biden.
The headline speech was a critical step to convincing foreign leaders that Biden, 81, remains up to the task of leading the 32-member military alliance. It was also a key test in saving his presidential campaign following a disastrous debate against Donald Trump that led many in his own party to question his mental acuity.
In forceful tones, Biden said: “Before this war, Putin thought Nato would break. Today, Nato is stronger than it’s ever been in its history. When this senseless war began, Ukraine was a free country. Today it’s still a free country and the war will end with Ukraine remaining a free and independent country.”
“Russia will not prevail,” he said to rising applause. “Ukraine will prevail.”
In a speech later in the night, Zelenskiy urged US political leaders not to wait for the outcome of November’s presidential election to move forcefully to aid his country.
“Everyone is waiting for November. Americans are waiting for November, in Europe, Middle East, in the Pacific, the whole world is looking towards November and, truly speaking, Putin awaits November too.
“It is time to step out of the shadows, to make strong decisions … to act and not to wait for November or any other month,” Zelenskiy said.
It was announced on Tuesday that the US and its European allies would act to bolster Ukraine’s air defences at a time when the country is under constant heavy bombardment from Russia.
The US, Germany and Romania would send additional batteries of the Patriot air defence system while Patriot components donated by the Netherlands would enable another battery to operate, according to a statement by the leaders of the US, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Romania.
The Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, approved the donation of a Italian-French-made equivalent of the Patriot interceptor, the SAMP/T air defence system.
“These five strategic air defence systems will help to protect Ukrainian cities, civilians, and soldiers, and we are coordinating closely with the Ukrainian government so that these systems can be utilised rapidly,” the statement said. “We are working on a further announcement this year of additional strategic air defence systems for Ukraine.”
As well the medium range Patriot and SAMP/T systems, the US and its allies said they would provide Ukraine with dozens of shorter-range tactical systems, including the US-Norwegian made NASAMS, US-made Hawks, Iris systems made by a European consortium and German Gepard missiles.
Britain’s new prime minister, Keir Starmer, and Zelenskiy, were among those arriving at the US capital amid a warning that Russia could step up missile strikes on Ukraine this week, repeating a barrage that killed at least 38 on Monday.
Diplomats said that a final communique would probably declare Ukraine’s path to Nato to be “irreversible” and to move control of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, the main conduit for delivering military aid and training to Ukraine, under Nato control.
Those steps are widely seen as an attempt to “Trump-proof” Nato policies from the potential for a new Republican administration to cut aid to Ukraine, or possibly to make it contingent on holding direct negotiations with Russia.
Despite the communique, there will be no meaningful progress on Ukraine joining Nato in Washington, although alliance members will seek to dress up the latest package of support as part of what is described as “a bridge to membership”.
Holdouts including the US, Hungary, Germany and Italy are concerned that allowing Ukraine to join Nato while the war with Russia continues would be considered an escalation that could bring the alliance into direct conflict with Moscow. Even a more limited form of what could be considered direct military intervention in support of Kyiv attracts similar concerns.
On Tuesday, Zelenskiy said he hoped Trump would not quit Nato and would keep supporting Ukraine, if he won in November, but he could not predict the former president’s actions.
“I can’t tell you what he will do, if he will be the president of the United States. I don’t know,” he said.
Jens Stoltenberg, Nato’s outgoing secretary general, speaking immediately before Biden, sought to justify continued US and western support for Ukraine by arguing that “the biggest cost and the greatest risk will be if Russia wins in Ukraine”. Authoritarian leaders in China, North Korea and Iran would all feel emboldened if Russia conquered its neighbour, he added, describing the war as a struggle over values.
“They all support Russia’s brutal war. They all want Nato to fail. So the outcome of this war will shape global security for decades to come. The time to stand for freedom and democracy is now the place is Ukraine,” the Nato chief added. Biden subsequently awarded Stoltenberg, the presidential medal of freedom, the highest civilian honour in the US.
In remarks to the Guardian, Ruslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, said that the strike on the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital should be a “turning point” in the war and lead to great supplies of anti-air weapons to Ukraine.
“I believe that what happened today must be a turning point to change everyone’s attitude to what is happening in Ukraine, and I believe that without the F-16 fighter jets, without the new air defence systems, without the ammunition for those systems, we won’t be able to cover the skies to defend Ukraine,” he said.
Elsewhere at the summit, several high-ranking European officials have met with a top foreign policy adviser to Donald Trump.
Keith Kellogg, a retired lieutenant general who served as the chief of staff to Trump’s national security council, told Reuters he had met several European officials in recent days, including foreign ministers, but did not disclose their identities.
Kellogg, who is in regular contact with Trump, has emphasised that he does not speak for the former president nor his campaign.
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Zelenskiy returns to Washington, to say thanks, build relationships
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelinskiy returns to the U.S. capitol on Wednesday to cement relationships with lawmakers who will vote on future aid for his country, and thank them for $175 billion already approved since Russia invaded in February 2022.
Zelenskiy, who is in Washington for this week's NATO summit, is expected to meet with the leaders of the Senate and House of Representatives and some of the committees involved in defense, spending, diplomacy and national security.
"It's an incredibly important mission and we've got to stand by Ukraine," Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner told Reuters.
The visit comes amid deep uncertainty about this year's U.S. presidential election, which pits incumbent Democrat Joe Biden, a strong supporter of aid to Ukraine, against former Republican President Donald Trump, who has expressed skepticism.
Biden's uneven June 27 debate performance against Trump and low public approval have raised fresh doubts about his ability to win re-election or keep up with the demands of his grueling job for another 4-1/2 years.
A handful of congressional Democrats have called for Biden to step aside and let another candidate compete against Trump.
Reuters reported last month that two Trump advisers had presented him with a plan to end Russia's war in Ukraine - if he wins the Nov. 5 election - that involves telling Kyiv it will only get more U.S. weapons if it enters peace talks.
In Congress, dozens of Trump's closest allies have voted repeatedly against assisting Zelenskiy's government, although Democrats and more internationally focused Republicans have worked together to approve the $175 billion in aid.
FURTHER ASSISTANCE IN DOUBT
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, a close Trump ally, changed course in April - months after Biden requested the money - and allowed the House to vote on and pass $61 billion in assistance for Ukraine.
When Zelenskiy last visited Congress in December, Johnson had said he would not support Biden's request for additional funding.
The House passed the supplemental spending package by 311 to 112, with the "no" votes coming from conservative Republicans closely allied with Trump. The vote fueled concerns Trump's party will never approve more money for Ukraine if they take control of the House, Senate and White House in November.
However, Johnson said in his first major national security address this week that Russia poses a threat beyond Ukraine, and American voters have expressed support for the aid as he traveled around the country.
"People understand that (Russian President Vladimir Putin) would not stop if he took Kyiv. He's a ruthless dictator in my view," Johnson said.
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