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| Ruling People Power Party Chairman Lee Jun-seok, left, meets Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, June 6. Courtesy of People Power Party |
By Nam Hyun-woo
A delegation from the Ukrainian parliament will likely visit Korea's National Assembly next month to meet their counterparts, the conservative ruling People Power Party (PPP) said, Friday.
According to PPP officials, the party is in talks with the Ukrainian Embassy to arrange the delegation's visit to Seoul and meetings with leaders of Korea's major parties possibly by July 4.
The envisaged trip will come after a PPP delegation led by Chairman Lee Jun-seok made a weeklong visit to Kyiv and other cities earlier this month. During the visit, the delegation met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss support for the war-torn country.
The Ukrainian delegation is expected to be led by diplomat-turned-lawmaker Andriy Nikolayenko, who is known for his close relations with his Korean counterparts and role in the PPP delegation's visit to Kyiv.
PPP Rep. Tae Yong-ho, the party's international affairs committee head, is in charge of arranging the Ukrainian delegation's visit to Korea.
During the visit, they are expected to discuss the Korean government's humanitarian aid for Ukraine. Earlier this week, the Korean government approved an additional $50 million (65 billion won) in humanitarian aid, pushing up the country's total contributions to Ukraine to $100 million.
So far, Korea has been supporting the country with medical and food supplies but remains reluctant in providing lethal weapons, with the foreign ministry reiterating that "our principle is to support Ukraine with humanitarian aid."
If the delegation visits Seoul, chances are also high that it will pay a visit to President Yoon Suk-yeol, but PPP officials said that nothing has been confirmed regarding the itinerary.
