South Korea–Ukraine relations are foreign relations between South Korea and Ukraine. Diplomatic Relations were established on February 10, 1992. South Korea has an embassy in Kyiv.New ambassador of Republic of Korea presents copies of credentials at Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Ukrinform (16 Juni 2021) Ukraine has an embassy in Seoul.Ukrainian diplomats forecast 20 percent increase in exports to South Korea, Ukrinform (25 November 2020)
Political relations
Ukraine declared its independence on August 24, 1991, with the Dissolution of the Soviet Union, On December 30, 1991, the South Korean government recognized Ukraine as a sovereign state. South Korea and Ukraine established diplomatic relations on February 10, 1992. On July 31, 1992, the government of the Republic of Korea established the Embassy of South Korea in Ukraine in Kyiv, In October 1997, the Ukrainian government established the Embassy of Ukraine in South Korea in Seoul. Since then, the Republic of Korea and Ukraine have maintained friendly relations, with reciprocal visits by high-ranking officials from both countries.
On February 24, 2022, South Korea's Blue House held a National Security Council chaired by Suh Hoon, then director of South Korea's Office of National Security, to discuss measures regarding the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Moon Jae-in, President of the Republic of Korea, said, "Russia's invasion of Ukraine cannot be justified under any circumstances. South Korea will work for a peaceful resolution of the situation, such as economic sanctions against Russia." The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also issued a spokesperson statement, saying, "We strongly condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which constitutes an act in violation of the Charter of the United Nations. " and joins the international community's economic sanctions against Russia. The Ministry of Economy and Finance announced that it will impose sanctions on Sberbank and the six largest Russian banks (VEB. RF, Sberbank (PSB), VTB Bank, Otkritie, Sovcom, and Novikom). The Financial Services Commission said it would also suspend transactions with Rossiya Bank as of March 7, 2022.
Since the start of the Russo-Ukrainian war, the South Korean government has stated that Ukraine's sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity must be respected. Therefore, it does not recognize the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014, the independence of the pro-Russian separatist republics in the Donbas (DPR and LPR), nor the Russian annexation of four Ukrainian oblasts (Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia) in September 2022.
Travel The Ukrainian government provides visa-free entry for up to 90 days within a 180-day period, for South Korean nationals with a South Korean passport. However, on February 13, 2022, the South Korean government designated Ukraine as a travel ban country due to escalating military tensions with Russia. Ukrainian citizens with Ukrainian passports must apply for a visa to enter South Korea. However, if they hold a diplomatic or tolerance passport, they can enter South Korea without a visa and stay for up to 90 days.
Trade relations Since 1998, Korean exports to Ukraine have generally grown each year, except for a decline in 1999. However, due to the 2008 financial crisis, there was a significant 76.0% drop in 2009. Following that, Korean exports to Ukraine experienced steady growth, but starting in 2013, the country's exports declined sharply as the Ukrainian economy faced challenges from the Revolution of Dignity and War in Donbass
As of October 2019, South Korea's total investment in Ukraine amounted to $37 million (78 deals), mainly focused on car, mobile computing, and home appliance sales. In 2019, over 20 Korean companies, including Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, Hyundai Motor Company, Hyundai Rotem, Youngsan Corporation, POSCO, Ecovice, OSSTEM and Hankook, were operating within Ukraine.
According to the MIT Media Lab Economic Complexity Observatory, South Korea's exports to Ukraine were valued at $479 million in 2020, mainly manufactured goods such as automobiles and various machinery. On the other hand, Ukraine exported $382 million to South Korea, mainly corn, wheat, and other food crops.
+Top 10 Export Items from South Korea to Ukraine (Unit: Thousand USD, %) Rank HS Code Item 2017 (Amount, Thousand USD) 2017 (Growth Rate, %) 2018 (1–6 months)(Amount, Thousand USD) 2018 (1–6 months)(Growth Rate, %) 1 7411 Car 46,932 3.7 33,050 22.6 2 2140 Synthetic resin 24,584 11.1 16,205 32.5 3 6134 Hot-dip galvanization 16,643 71.9 13,831 48.8 4 3203 Tire 21,316 30.7 12,876 9.1 5 7420 Automotive Parts 21,547 -2.8 10,059 -2.6 6 7251 Heavy equipment 8,996 65.9 9,350 124.2 7 3109 Plastic 11,867 2.3 6,764 19.9 8 8414 Distribution control panel 3,839 0 6,760 5,408,041.60 9 2273 Cosmetic 6,841 72 5,206 93.6 10 4111 Polyester fiber 4,659 24.6 3,801 112.3
+Top 10 Import Items from Ukraine to South Korea (Unit: Thousand USD, %) Rank HS Code Item 2017 (Amount, Thousand USD) 2017 (Growth Rate, %) 2018 (1–6 months) (Amount, Thousand USD) 2018 (1–6 months)(Growth Rate, %) 1 136 Fodder 273,740 2.2 73,990 -52 2 1120 Steel 95,342 81.3 45,013 -10.4 3 6181 Alloy 56,012 71.7 16,810 -57.6 4 312 Lumber 28,826 95.5 10,576 -14.5 5 135 By-product feed 5,551 25.3 4,673 28.5 6 1190 Mineral 4,342 -7.7 3,455 31.4 7 131 Vegetable oil 5,277 -35.5 3,285 22.9 8 8137 Software 4,512 -5.2 2,104 142.5 9 2289 Fine chemical 6,454 -64.2 1,874 -22.2 10 8259 Heating equipment 1,898 7,590,904.00 1,839 185.9
Culture relations
Television Since 2008, when Ukraine (TV channel) aired "슬픈연가," "대장금," "다모," and "태양의 여자" to high ratings, interest in Korean dramas has steadily grown, and in 2017, five Korean dramas were imported and remade into local formats by major Ukrainian broadcasters, achieving the highest ratings of their time.
Movies With the spread of the Korean Wave in Ukraine, interest in Cinema of Korea has increased. In 2008, Kyiv hosted the first Korean film festival, and in 2016, a film about North Korean defectors was chosen to screen at the Molodist (Kyiv International Documentary Film Festival). This film attracted a lot of attention from Ukrainian media. With the screenings of Park Chan-wook's "The Handmaiden" in 2016 and Bong Joon-ho's "Parasite" as the Odesa International Film Festival's opening film in 2019, South Korean cinema is growing in popularity in Ukraine.
Korean language Korean language departments were established in 1998 at Kyiv National Linguistic University and Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv. A Korea Education Institution, which is crucial to the growth and spread of Korean language instruction in Ukraine, was established in Kyiv in March 2017. In September 2018, the University of Customs and Finance in Ukraine's industrial hub of Dnipro also established a Korean language department. Every year, there are more Korean majors and trainees. The Korea Education Institution, founded in 2017, had about 200 students in its first year and doubled to about 400 in 2019.
Korean cuisine Over 30,000 Koryo-saram reside in Ukraine, so there is a portion of the population that is familiar with some Korean cuisine. The Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Ukraine organized a successful 'Taste of Korea' event in 2017, and in 2018, the embassy made efforts to promote Korean cuisine, including a presentation of Korean cuisine at a cultural event commemorating the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics.
People-to-people relations Koryo-saram A larger migration started in the 1980s when Koryo-saram from Central Asia started moving to Ukraine for seasonal agricultural work. Koryo-saram first arrived in Ukraine in the 1950s to study abroad and work, but the migration really took off in those years. The Koryo-saram population was 12,711 in 2001, per a census survey in Ukraine. ROK Ministry of Foreign Affairs projects that there will be about 30,000 Koryo-saram as of 2019, including unregistered or stateless Koryo-saram, according to their estimates. The Koryo-saram organization has put the number at 15,631.
Expatriates As of January 2020, there were approximately 612 people in Ukraine according to the Ukrainian Immigration Office (based on those staying for 3 months or longer). This includes 41 permanent residents, about 110 individuals involved in local offices and personal businesses, around 128 missionaries, about 179 international students, 97 people in Ukrainian and foreign records, and 57 people working in government agencies (such as embassies and KOTRA). On February 8, 2022, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that there are 354 people from Korea residing in Ukraine. The Ministry also noted that the number of expatriates has been decreasing.
Russian invasion of Ukraine
Before invasion On 25 January 2022 (Tuesday), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs decided to upgrade the travel advisory for 12 provinces in southeastern Ukraine to Level 3 (travel recommendation) as part of strengthening safety measures for South Korean citizens. Travel advisories at Level 3 (travel recommendation) were already applied to Crimea and Donbas within Ukraine, but were later expanded to 15 oblasts of Ukraine (Crimea, Luhansk, Donetsk, Volyn, Rivne, Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhia, Kherson, Odesa, and Mykolaiv). The South Korean Embassy in Ukraine contacted South Korean expatriates residing in Ukraine to check on their safety status and re-examine emergency communication networks. In addition, the embassy secured water and emergency food supplies in cooperation with the embassies of other countries, and updated evacuation and support plans for expatriates in case of an emergency. On February 13, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (South Korea) decided to urgently issue a travel alert level 4 (travel ban) for all regions of Ukraine. On February 22, the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs released an official statement.
After invasion
On February 24, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs released an official statement condemning the invasion of Ukraine.
The Republic of Korea Embassy in Ukraine noted that beginning on March 8, Korea sent emergency medical supplies to Ukraine as part of their $10 million in humanitarian assistance commitment. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked Moon Jae-in on March 3 via a telephone conversation.
ROK Embassy in Ukraine published an article about a phone conversation between Chung Eui-yong, the Korean minister of foreign affairs, and Dmytro Kuleba, the Ukrainian minister of foreign affairs, on April 15. Minister Chung explained the support provided by Korea and its future plans. Minister Kuleba expressed gratitude for Korea's solidarity and support, and both sides agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation.
ROK Embassy in Ukraine reported that the Korean government sent approximately 20 tons of additional humanitarian aid to Ukraine on April 19. The aid is intended to provide assistance to the Ukrainian people and refugees who are experiencing severe crisis as a result of Russia's continued invasion. The Korean government is collaborating closely with the Ukrainian embassy in Korea to determine the specifics of the aid, and is prioritizing Ukraine's requests in selecting items. The Korean government hopes that this aid will help alleviate the suffering of the Ukrainian people and refugees, and has expressed its willingness to provide further assistance if necessary.
On April 18, 2023, Reuters reported that South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol had said South Korea might extend its support for Ukraine if the country comes under large-scale civilian attack. This marked the first indication that Seoul might be willing to provide weapons to Ukraine. President Yoon explained that while considering South Korea's relationship with the parties engaged in the war and the developments in the battlefield, they will take the most appropriate measures.