When the war started, Seoul's response was hesitant and ambiguous, provoking a wave of international criticism that the government neither seemed to understand, nor knew how to respond to. The first response of South Korean President Moon Jae-In's administration was fear for South Korean exports to Russia. Lee Jae-myung, the leftist candidate in the recent presidential election at the time, blamed Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy for provoking the invasion, which brought another wave of social media backlash. For days, it was not clear if Seoul would support the sanctions regime. South Korea only came around when the U.S. threatened a trade exemption its exporters need. South Korean civil society then began to protest their government's foot-dragging, and the war arguably helped hawkish, conservative candidate Yoon Seok-yeol win the presidential election. And just this week, when Zelenskyy addressed the South Korean Parliament, the turn-out of legislators to listen was embarrassingly low — only about 60 out of 300. The Korean Defense Ministry has also refused to send Ukraine weapons, claiming — rather implausibly given South Korea's enormous conventional advantage over North Korea — that arms transfers would reduce its security. This provoked yet another round of domestic criticism about South Korea dodging the responsibilities it should carry if it wishes to be a global pivotal state.
japantoday.com
