Seoul “lends” 500,000 155 mm shells to the US, which will give them to Ukraine
In a move that could help the US government supply Ukraine with munitions, South Korea has agreed to loan the Pentagon 500,000 155mm artillery shells, Reuters reported, citing a South Korean newspaper.
As the Pentagon relentlessly pours arms and ammunition into its proxy war in Ukraine against Russia, America's arsenal has rapidly been depleted, to the point where the Biden administration is going around demanding the purchase or "borrowing" of ammunition from other countries.
The United States has given Ukraine more than a million 155mm shells. The Korean deal will give some relief to US stockpiles and therefore the Ukrainian supply chain, but it was apparently reached after a tough discussion in Seoul.
“We have chosen to significantly increase the volume of projectiles but to adopt the rental method, after considering how to respond to the request of the blood ally in good faith, while adhering to the government principle of not supplying lethal weapons to Ukraine”, an anonymous source told South Korean newspaper DongA Ilbo.
The loaned shells will apparently be used to replenish US stockpiles. However, given that the munitions are quite fungible, the net effect is that South Korea will aid the Ukrainian military, which is prohibited by South Korea's arms export policy.
News of the deal comes amid a wave of controversy in South Korea over the apparent revelation that the US government had been spying on Korean officials as they deliberated on the decision. This conclusion is dictated by alleged Defense Department documents, among many that have leaked in recent weeks, causing problems for the Biden administration.
While unable to authenticate the documents, the Wall Street Journal said they "contain enough detail to make them credible." If legitimate, they include detailed accounts of March 1 discussions among South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's top aides.
Officials feared that selling munitions to the United States would violate South Korea's policy not to send weapons to warring countries. The New York Times reported that Korean officials also feared provoking Russia, according to the leaked documents, as Seoul is trying to help Moscow temper North Korean belligerence.
South Korea's president has previously said his country will not supply arms to Ukraine, but the documents suggest that, behind closed doors, Korean officials were conspiring to circumvent this public guarantee.
According to the leaked documents, then South Korea's National Security Advisor Kim Sung-han proposed the idea of selling 330,000 shells to Poland "since getting munitions to Ukraine quickly was the ultimate goal of the United States". According to this fictitious transaction concept, Poland would have agreed to be designated as an "end user" of the munitions, then go back and send them to Ukraine.
In a statement expected to arouse strong skepticism, a senior official in the South Korean presidential office on Tuesday said senior US and South Korean defense officials agreed that many of the documents are forgeries. The same official also said it was not possible to spy on South Korea's presidential office given its impenetrable security, the Journal reports.
Despite these reassurances from Baghdad Bob, a South Korean investigation is ongoing. "If it is true that they spied on us, it is a very disappointing act that undermines the South Korea-US alliance, which is based on mutual trust," said Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition democratic party.
In September, Doug Bush, assistant secretary of the army for acquisition, logistics and technology, told a media roundtable that the Pentagon is seeking to triple US production of 155mm rounds.
The Department of Defense has shipped M777 155mm howitzers to Ukraine. Highly mobile and easily transportable by helicopter, they are a new weapon for the Ukrainians, for which the Americans have provided training in an "undisclosed area outside of Ukraine". Here is Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty propaganda on the role of the M777 in the war:
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The article Seoul "lends" 500,000 155 mm shells to the USA, which will give them to Ukraine comes from Scenari Economici .
This is a machine translation of a post published on Scenari Economici at the URL https://scenarieconomici.it/seoul-presta-500-mila-proiettili-da-155-mm-agli-usa-che-li-daranno-allucraina/ on Thu, 13 Apr 2023 06:00:16 +0000.