Mateusz Morawiecki told the NYT in an interview this week that tapping into South Korean artillery stocks was crucial to getting more badly needed ammunition to Ukraine.
But he said he believed that only the direct intervention of US President Joe Biden could lead to an agreement for South Korea to make its artillery shells available to Ukraine to use in the fight against Russia, the newspaper reported.
Morawiecki said, as quoted by the NYT: “We spoke to South Korea about this, the weapon delivery and delivery of ammunition. But I don’t think that this is going to be possible without the intervention of the United States. South Korea is fearful of Russian reaction and Chinese reaction.”
Speaking to the NYT on Tuesday, the Polish prime minister also said that Poland would never transfer the weaponry without negotiating an arrangement with South Korea.
Poland has purchased many weapons systems from South Korea, but Morawiecki said that buying shells from Seoul specifically to send to Ukraine would require US involvement, the NYT reported in an article penned by Julian E. Barnes and Adam Entous.
'A pivotal moment in the history of the globe'
Morawiecki warned in the interview that a defeat for Ukraine against Russia would have global ramifications.
“I want Ukraine to win this war because, God forbid, Ukraine gets conquered, then it’s a completely different world,” he said. “If Russia succeeds, and a big country can invade a smaller country, why would not China repeat the same trick with the support of Russians? So it’s a pivotal moment in the history of the globe.”
Morawiecki also argued in the interview that, while Eastern European countries like Poland understood the gravity of the situation, he believed that Western Europe could do more to help Ukraine, The New York Times reported.
“I think that many of them could do more, more quickly and more weapon delivery,” he said. “They are rich countries.”
Thursday is day 414 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
(gs)
Source: PAP, nytimes.com