South Korea faces quandary over Ukraine’s air defence system request

If South Korea were to agree to Zelensky’s request, it could further strain ties with Russia and impair its own defence, analysts say

In a social media post on Saturday, Zelensky warned that “a decision has been made for 30,000 to 50,000 North Koreans to be deployed on the territory of Russia”, a figure higher than his earlier estimate of 30,000 made in July. He provided no further details.

Therefore, South Korea “should have closer cooperation with Ukraine”, he said.

Zelensky said: “We would very much like to receive support from South Korea in the form of what we lack – air defence systems.” In return, Ukraine could help South Korea with drone technology, among other things, he added.