NATO's chief urges South Korea to step up military support for Ukraine - Reuters

SEOUL, Jan 30 (Reuters) - NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg urged South Korea connected Monday to summation subject enactment to Ukraine, citing different countries that person changed their argumentation of not providing weapons to countries successful struggle pursuing Russia's invasion.

Stoltenberg was speaking successful Seoul, the archetypal halt connected a travel that volition besides see Japan and is aimed astatine strengthening ties with Western allies successful Asia successful the look of the warfare successful Ukraine and rising contention with China.

Speaking astatine the Chey Institute for Advanced Studies successful Seoul, helium thanked South Korea for its non-lethal assistance to Ukraine, but urged it to bash more, adding determination is an "urgent need" for ammunition.

"I impulse the Republic of Korea to proceed and to measurement up connected the circumstantial contented of subject support," helium said.

"At the extremity of the day, it's a determination for you to make, but I'll accidental that respective NATO allies who person had arsenic a argumentation to ne'er export weapons to countries successful a struggle person changed that argumentation now," helium said, citing Germany, Sweden and Norway.

"If we don't privation autocracy and tyranny to win, past they (Ukrainians) request weapons, that's the reality," said Stoltenberg, a erstwhile Norwegian premier minister.

South Korea has signed large deals providing hundreds of tanks, craft and different weapons to NATO subordinate Poland since Russia invaded Ukraine. But President Yoon Suk-yeol has said a South Korean instrumentality that forbids supplying weapons to countries engaged successful struggle makes it hard to nonstop arms to Ukraine.

Russia calls its invasion, launched connected Feb. 24, a "special operation" to ward disconnected threats to its ain security.

CHINESE 'CHALLENGE'

In meetings with elder South Korean officials, Stoltenberg said events successful Europe and North America were interconnected with those successful different regions, and that the confederation wanted to assistance negociate planetary threats by expanding partnerships successful Asia.

The NATO main said it was "extremely important" that Russia doesn't triumph this war, not lone for the Ukrainians but besides to debar sending a incorrect connection to authoritarian leaders, including successful Beijing, that they tin get what they privation by force.

Although China is not NATO's adversary, it has go "much higher" connected NATO's agenda, helium said, citing Beijing's rising subject capabilities and coercive behaviour successful the region.

"We judge that we should prosecute with China connected issues similar arms control, clime alteration and different issues," helium said. "But astatine the aforesaid time, we are precise wide that China poses a situation to our values, to our interests, and to our security."

Responding to a question astir Stoltenberg's remarks, Chinese overseas ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said connected Monday that China was a spouse to countries, not a challenge, and that it did not endanger immoderate nation's interests oregon security.

"We besides anticipation that NATO volition wantonness its Cold War mentality and the conception of bloc confrontation, and bash much for the information and stableness of Europe and the world," Mao told a regular quality briefing.

In a connection carried by authorities media connected Monday, North Korea called Stoltenberg's sojourn a "prelude to confrontation and warfare arsenic it brings the acheronian clouds of a 'new Cold War' to the Asia-Pacific region".

Last twelvemonth South Korea opened its archetypal diplomatic ngo to NATO, vowing to deepen practice connected non-proliferation, cyber defence, counter-terrorism, catastrophe effect and different information areas.

U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin was besides owed to get successful Seoul connected Monday for talks with his South Korean counterpart Lee Jong-sup.

Reporting by Soo-hyang Choi; Additional reporting by Hanna Song and Eduardo Baptista; Editing by Kim Coghill, Gerry Doyle and Gareth Jones

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.