Yoon meets with NATO chief, promises to help Ukrainian people

By Lee Haye-ah

SEOUL, Jan. 30 (Yonhap) -- President Yoon Suk Yeol met with the chief of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) on Monday and promised to provide continued support for the Ukrainian people in their war against Russia, his office said.

Yoon met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg during the official's two-day visit to South Korea and discussed South Korea-NATO ties, South Korea's Indo-Pacific strategy and North Korea's nuclear program, among other issues, according to senior presidential secretary for press affairs Kim Eun-hye.

"Secretary General Stoltenberg explained the current situation in Ukraine and expressed his thanks for South Korea's continued assistance, emphasizing the need to ensure the international community is not imprinted with the wrong message that an armed invasion is acceptable," Kim said in a written press briefing.

"President Yoon said he will continue to fulfill all possible roles in cooperation with the international community to help the Ukrainian people," she said.

Yoon recalled his attendance at a NATO summit in Madrid last June and expressed hope South Korea and the alliance will further expand their cooperation through the country's newly established mission to NATO.

He also explained the details of South Korea's Indo-Pacific strategy announced last December and noted the need to cooperate with NATO in its implementation.

On North Korea, Yoon called for the active role of the secretary general and NATO in discouraging the regime from carrying out further provocations amid its continued advancement of nuclear and missile capabilities.

Stoltenberg invited Yoon to a NATO summit scheduled for July in Lithuania, and the president thanked him for the invitation while promising to consider attending, Kim said.

hague@yna.co.kr
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