Ukraine’s first woman, Olena Zelenska, met with President Yoon Suk Yeol of South Korea on Tuesday to request nonlethal navy help, utilizing a go to to Seoul to emphasize the necessity for “one thing extra radical” than simply humanitarian help to finish Russia’s invasion of her nation.
Ms. Zelenska thanked Mr. Yoon for the humanitarian and financial assist that South Korea has already offered and requested for nonlethal navy gear, together with instruments for mine detection and elimination, a spokesman for Mr. Yoon’s workplace, Lee Do-woon, informed reporters.
Ms. Zelenska stated on Telegram that she and different Ukrainian officers, together with the primary deputy prime minister, Yulia Svyrydenko, additionally mentioned Ukraine’s want for stronger air-defense programs.
Mr. Yoon vowed that South Korea would coordinate with NATO and different nations to “actively help the Ukrainian individuals,” his spokesman stated, however didn’t supply particular particulars on what that may entail.
Seoul has thus far resisted calls to ship its artillery shells to Ukrainian forces, who want extra ammunition forward of a long-awaited counteroffensive supposed to retake Russian-occupied territory. Mr. Yoon indicated for the primary time solely final month that Seoul may be prepared to think about sending navy help to Kyiv, telling Reuters that it will be tough to insist completely on humanitarian or monetary help within the occasion of a large-scale assault on civilians.
The South Korean president’s shift on the matter was “a sensible determination,” Ms. Zelenska informed the Yonhap Information Company in an interview revealed Tuesday.
“Certainly, when there’s a prison in the home, the homeowners clearly needn’t solely humanitarian help, meals and medication, however one thing extra radical to drive the prison out,” she stated, including that peace was potential solely via a Ukrainian victory, not via negotiations with a “assassin who has no regrets.”
Ms. Zelenska has change into a distinguished emissary for her husband’s administration since turning into a wartime first woman, championing psychological well being restoration and youngsters’s welfare whereas touring aboard to advocate for help from Kyiv’s allies. Earlier this month, she met with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of Britain in London earlier than attending the coronation of King Charles III.
