South Korea warned Thursday that North Korea and Russia will face consequences if they violate U.N. Security Council resolutions with potential arms deals and military cooperation.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a summit at the Vostochny space center in eastern Russia on Wednesday in their first meeting in more than four years.
"North Korea and Russia will clearly pay the price if they are involved in any acts that pose a significant threat to our security by violating the U.N. Security Council resolutions," the South Korean National Security Council (NSC) said in a press release.
NSC committee members, including National Security Advisor Cho Tae-yong, Foreign Minister Park Jin and Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup, called on Pyongyang and Moscow not to get involved in arms trade and military cooperation banned under the U.N. resolutions and international restrictions.
Later in the day, the presidential office said Cho had a phone call with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts, Jake Sullivan and Akiba Takeo, in which they expressed serious concerns over the two nations' discussions on military cooperation, which includes the development of an inter-continental ballistic missile, despite repeated warnings from the international community.
The three national security advisors said Russia as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council is more responsible for abiding by the U.N. resolutions when it comes to arms trade and military cooperation, the statement said.
Earlier in the day, the foreign ministry warned that a potential arms deal between Pyongyang and Moscow would violate U.N. Security Council resolutions.
Lim Soo-suk, a spokesperson for the ministry, told reporters that South Korea plans to consult with the United States and other friendly nations on response measures if a potential military cooperation deal between North Korea and Russia poses a serious threat to South Korea.
Lim said that a Pyongyang-Moscow deal on military cooperation would have a "very negative impact" on relations between South Korea and Russia.
Source: Yonhap News Agency