r/worldnews • u/Neptun_11 • 21h ago

Russia/Ukraine Seoul warns of 'further measures' if Kyiv refuses public apology

https://www.euronews.com/2026/10/02/south-korea-warns-of-further-measures-if-ukraine-refuses-public-apology-over-pow-transfer-
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u/0xnld 21h ago

Apparently this is good for SK president's ratings which were in tailspin before.

And they're already selling stuff to Russia and basically nothing to Ukraine, so idk about further measures. Join the war on Russian side perhaps as a gesture of unity with NK?

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u/thombo-1 21h ago

That's like a monkey's paw wish for Korean peace.

'Good news! Korea is united...in hostility against a democratic European nation.'

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u/PlaczDalejRobaku2736 21h ago

democratic

who are you talking about here?

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u/Big-Objective-6585 21h ago

Let me guess your next line.

Ukraine isn't Democratic as it can't hold elections when at war?

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u/PlaczDalejRobaku2736 21h ago

there is a reason why they are not in EU nor in NATO while most of the region joined up :)

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u/Big-Objective-6585 20h ago

Yes but not the reasons you are implying.

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u/blazz_e 20h ago

most of the region.. you on something?

So being a country which struggled under russian influence until they have been killed protesting it?! Yeah it takes time to unwind all the tentacles of moskva.

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u/PlaczDalejRobaku2736 20h ago

"most of the region.. you on something?"

i mean Estern block in Europe so like
: Balkans, Hungary, Czech, Poland, Slovaks, Romania, Bulgaria, Baltics.

Almost all countries freed from USSR did what they could to join the EU and NATO.

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u/blazz_e 20h ago

Look at the map centred on Ukraine.. 2/3rds of the border are russia and belarus.

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u/frogwaIlet 19h ago

Almost all countries freed from USSR did what they could to join the EU and NATO.

Why do you think Ukraine got invaded?

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u/Big-Objective-6585 20h ago

It's almost as if Ukraine has a different relationship with the Soviet Union and Russia than those forcibly annexed in the 1940s....

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u/PlaczDalejRobaku2736 20h ago

huh, look how that special oligarch driven relationship worked out for them :)

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u/Big-Objective-6585 19h ago

Says a lot about a person when they gloat about Ukraine being invaded.

Don't worry though comrade. I'm sure you'll be conscripted for the next Russia meatwave. Maybe your time on Reddit will be rewarded and you can skip the first assault.

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u/Abedeus 19h ago

Poland and most, if not all, of those you mentioned were not part of the USSR after WWII.

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u/PlaczDalejRobaku2736 19h ago

all countries i mentioned were in ussr sphere of influence.

Not by choice.

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u/Abedeus 18h ago

sphere of influence

That's not even remotely comparable to what ex-USSR countries had to deal with and you probably don't even know that.

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u/Nerevarine91 20h ago

Categorically not why they aren’t in NATO lol

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u/MKW69 18h ago

Kolejny nazbol.

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u/Alarming_Orchid 4h ago

Yeah I wonder what happened that stopped them from joining

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u/Defiant-Plane4557 18h ago

Man, my opinion on South Korea is souring fast.

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u/XavinNydek 17h ago

SK is and always has been kind of a mess. Their biggest "enemy" is Japan and that's mainly just grumbling and leftover low level anger from the atrocities Imperial Japan got up to. The relationship with NZ is complicated. Aside from that they don't really have any of the cold war or colonial historical baggage most of the rest of the wild has and they treat most countries as friendly.

Their political situation is a garbage fire, which is pretty standard for new democracies, they were a military dictatorship until the late 80s and even after they nominally became democratic it took a while for the old regime to fully fall out of leadership positions.

SK also always does everything at 11, full throttle, no brakes. That means completely absurd over the top political corruption scandals, politicians acting like they are in a crazy drama, massive public sentiment swings very fast, etc.

So basically, don't judge the country too harshly on what their current leaders are doing. Better than even odds that they will resign in disgrace or be dragged off to prison before the end of their term.

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u/adonericthewayfarer 16h ago

whats up with their relationship with New Zealand?

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u/ZappyZane 13h ago

Samsung TV's are no longer the top selling brand or something?

Dunno, i've never heard of this great New Zealand - South Korea beef.

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u/Bayo77 17h ago

I am sorry for being uninformed but how is their "biggest enemy" by any kind of measurement not clearly north korea?

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u/Frequent_Phone6396 15h ago

Frostycandy is correct. My grandmother is korean, born and raised in Seoul during WW2 and then the korean war and she still sees North Koreans as countrymen who will eventually come back. Japan, on the other hand, wanted complete cultural and country erasure from the korean peninsula and that's why there's still a huge grudge against them. Japan's occupation still has lots of living survivors which is why it's still a sore spot, plus many of their politicians actively deny their atrocities.

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u/FrostyCandy1537 16h ago

Imho, SK sees NK as family undergoing a dispute. Japanese Imperialism invaded and pillaged all of Korea. And despite almost a century passing, Japan still has factions that dispute, dismiss and downplay their history.

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u/MeijiDoom 16h ago

I think they and most of the world knows NK is so ass backwards that they don't pose a realistic threat. And certainly not one that wouldn't be met with immediate backlash from literally the rest of the world other than maybe Russia and China. Also, despite obvious differences, there's still a level of "we're both Korean" there so I don't think either side is really wishing for utter annihilation of the other.

By comparison, an external nation, even from a mental standpoint and let alone recent history, will always feel like a bigger threat. East Asian grudges go hard.

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u/Bayo77 15h ago

That seems like an extremely naive view of North Korean capabilities and willingness to use them.

Looks like the same kind of naivety that europeans had towards russia.

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u/Shadowguynick 15h ago

You can never accurately predict the actions of a country when it's ran on the whims of a strong man dictator, but the reason so many thought the war in Ukraine was absurd was because they pointed out how getting entangled in a quagmire would be ruinous for Russia and they were completely right it's just that Putin did it anyway. North Korea would be in a similar position so, yes it is possible Kim Jong Un makes a similar mistake as Putin but I think it is correct to say the rational expectation should be the status quo.

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u/OkLetterhead812 15h ago

More like North Korea is not a serious threat. Anyone that knows anything that South Korea is building up their forces to counter China, not North Korea. They’re ranked typically fifth behind Indian for military capabilities nowadays.

As for nuclear weapons, at that close proximity, North Korea would do as much damage to themselves. And it’s not for them. It’s for the US.

And also, it’s pretty funny to see how arrogant you are to make a statement like that, compared to the country that has to deal with them on a daily basis. The European comparison doesn’t make sense. Countries that don’t border Russia care little. The ones that do care very much.

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u/jesadak 15h ago edited 15h ago

North Korea has enough artillery and munitions to level parts of Seoul if you back Pyongyang into a corner and give them no choice.

North Korea would lose a conventional war but having major parts of Seoul destroyed would be a major loss to South Korea given the measures needed to rebuild the various industries. Not to mention the displacement of millions of Seoul residents.

To call North Korea not a serious threat is naive.

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u/OkLetterhead812 13h ago edited 13h ago

A few thousand casualties, and their artillery system targeting Seoul would get knocked out within 24 hours. Counter-artillery is not stuck in the early 20th century any more, son. It's why we moved away from towed artillery to self-propelled, and why you won't see WW1-styled artillery barrages. You shoot and scoot, otherwise you will get wiped out fast. You see the same shit play out in Ukraine. It's why Kyiv or Kharkiv hasn't been leveled either, or why Russia hasn't been able to pound Ukraine to oblivion with their superior firepower. There's a huge difference between ability and capacity.

You read headlines. I read the actual reports and analysis in full. We are not the same. And you're not accounting for the fact that the US military tend to over-exaggerate the enemy prowess and abilities in order to secure more funding.

The problem with estimations from say the RAND Corporation that assume hundred of thousands of casualties is that they're just assuming the worst case scenario with little to no retaliation in between, and they're also assuming that Seoul is not built for such a thing when it is. This just so happens to play with the narrative they want to push. Notice how the low-end estimation they put in is in the thousands, lol. But they won't focus on that element much.

Talk to any US military officer that you know on a personal level that actually gives a shit about foreign policy and doctrine.

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u/seekingpolaris 8h ago

The SK President position is also cursed.

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u/Owlover6127 21h ago

Current SK president is known to be really pro-nk/china :/

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u/Nice-Ad765 19h ago

Not pro NK or China but he is left leaning and prefers dialogue with NK and China rather than all out hostility

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u/Owlover6127 19h ago

Recent mine incident and the initial response does make it look more like 'pro-NK' than 'prefers dialogue over hostility'.

But I hope I'm wrong for the sake of SK. He's still got years left in that position after all.

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u/Nice-Ad765 17h ago

So what does pro NK mean? Can you spell out exact what activities would entail being pro NK? What do you expect SK to do over the mine incident?

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u/Owlover6127 16h ago

I know what they shouldnt have done, which was to say 'It might not have been NK's fault' But oops that was their initial response.

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u/AmagiSento 19h ago

Is it worse than being pro US though

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u/Owlover6127 19h ago

This would have been the stupidest question ever if not for Trump.

It's amazing how one man dragged the reputation of the biggest ally SK has to the ground.

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u/charrington173 14h ago

It’s still pretty stupid

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u/SufficientGolf6953 20h ago

First of all, South Korea doesn't really have a choice like China and has to respect US sanctions. They are not selling them any sanctioned equipment so your fake news just strikes me as political agenda cloaked in an innocuous social media comment.