“Weapons and aids to Ukraine would face retaliations”: Russia threatens retaliation against Korea over NATO PURL program

Russia warned that it would retaliate if South Korea participates in any way in the “Ukraine Priority Support List (PURL),” a program under which South Korea would support the provision of weapons to Ukraine.

According to Russia’s TASS news agency, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on the 21st, in response to a question about “the possibility of South Korea joining NATO’s PURL,” that “in that case, we would have no choice but to exercise our right to take retaliatory measures, including asymmetrical steps.”

Zakharova added, “I want to emphasize once again that whether directly or indirectly, any form of participation by South Korea in such supplies will only delay the prospects for resolving the conflict in Ukraine.” She continued, “This will undoubtedly cause irreversible damage to Russia–South Korea relations and destroy the prospects of restoring constructive dialogue regarding the Korean Peninsula.”

Saying she was surprised by reports about the possibility of South Korea’s participation in PURL, she argued, “Such steps would not be consistent with this country’s (South Korea’s) official line that it will not join Western efforts to pour weapons and ammunition into the Ukrainian armed forces,” adding, “South Korean officials have repeatedly stated this.”

Zakharova also said, “Russia highly appreciates (South Korea’s) approach so far,” explaining that it views it as “an essential foundation for preventing further deterioration in Russia–South Korea relations and as a precondition for restoring dialogue and cooperation between the two countries in the future.”

A South Korean Foreign Ministry official said the previous day that the government has been continuously consulting with NATO on various options related to support for Ukraine, and that PURL—established in July last year—was included among the options under review.

PURL is a mechanism in which NATO member states provide funding to purchase U.S. weapons and support Ukraine. It has been reported that even if South Korea participates in PURL, it is considering limiting its support to non-lethal equipment.

So far, among non-NATO countries, Australia and New Zealand are participating, and foreign media reports have recently said that Japan is also expected to officially announce its participation.