Seoul rejects Putin's annexation of Ukraine territories

The ministry stressed that the Korean government "strongly condemns" Russia's armed "invasion" of Ukraine, calling it a violation of the principles of the UN Charter.

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a ceremony to sign the treaties for four regions of Ukraine to join Russia at the Kremlin in Moscow on Friday. The signing of the treaties followed the completion of the Kremlin-orchestrated referenda. [AP/YONHAP]

Seoul said on Saturday it does not recognize Russia’s annexation of parts of Ukraine.

“The Korean government does not recognize the referenda held in Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson and Russia’s annexation of the Ukrainian territory as legitimate,” Seoul’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement issued in Korean and English.

“Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence should be respected,” the statement continued.

The ministry stressed that the Korean government “strongly condemns” Russia’s armed “invasion” of Ukraine, calling it a violation of the principles of the UN Charter.

The statement came a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin signed treaties to annex four Ukrainian regions following the staging of referenda, which many countries have condemned as a sham.

U.S. President Joe Biden said Saturday that he urges all members of the international community to reject Russia’s illegal annexation and to stand with the people of Ukraine “for as long as it takes.”

“In response to Russia’s phony claims of annexation,” Biden said in a statement released by the White House, “the United States, together with our Allies and partners, are announcing new sanctions today.”

The sanctions, he continued, will impose costs on individuals and entities inside and outside Russia that provide political or economic support to illegal attempts to change the status of Ukrainian territory.

North Korea was not listed.

An unnamed U.S. official was recently quoted by the New York Times as saying that Russia was expected to try to purchase additional North Korean equipment, and that Moscow’s turning to Pyongyang for weapons was a sign that sanctions and export controls imposed by the United States and Europe were hampering its ability to obtain supplies for its war with Ukraine.

Pyongyang denied it exported artillery shells or rockets to Russia and called reports of such sales to Moscow a “rumor” aimed at tarnishing its reputation.

BY LEE SUNG-EUN [lee.sungeun@joongang.co.kr]