South Korea clapped back this week against the claims made in what appears to be a leaked U.S. classified document.
The document, purportedly from the Pentagon, contained information about internal discussions among South Korean military officials back in March regarding pressure the U.S. was putting on Seoul to assist in supplying weapons to Ukraine.
Existing laws in South Korea do not allow it to supply weapons to nations at war.
Kim Tae-hyo, South Korea’s deputy national security adviser, told reporters on April 11 that the document had been falsified and the information therein was “untrue,” per Reuters.
The document from the Pentagon was leaked on Discord, a social media platform, last week.
While their authenticity has been questioned, it has also put U.S. intelligence operations under scrutiny.
The document implies that the U.S. might have been engaged in spying on South Korea, which is considered to be one of its most significant allies.
The leak also comes ahead of President Yoon Suk Yeol’s state visit to Washington D.C. to meet with U.S. President Joe Biden on April 26.
Both countries have boosted their military partnership, as demonstrated by their forces partaking in the largest joint military exercise seen on the Korean peninsula in years last month, per The Dallas Express.
Yet it is possible that South Korea’s reluctance to provide Ukraine with military support might have put a strain on these relations.
South Korea has become a major exporter of weapons, per The Japan Times. In 2022, the country’s arms exports rose 140% to $17.3 billion. Many of these deals have been to Ukraine’s allies, such as Poland.
With the Ukrainian war characterized primarily by ground warfare requiring large supplies of artillery shells and ammunition, Ukraine’s allies have faced various supply issues.
European countries like Germany have struggled to meet their commitments to the war-besieged country, especially regarding the supply of tanks.
While Kim Tae-hyo told reporters that the alleged eavesdropping done by the U.S. was not “conducted on us with malicious intent,” not all of South Korea’s politicians seem so forgiving, per AP News.
“As a sovereign nation, we must sternly respond to the spying of state secrets, even if it was committed by an ally with whom [South Korea] has bonded over blood,” said Park Hong-geun, who is the floor leader of the Democratic Party, per AP News.