First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Hong-kyun expressed concerns over the deepening military alliance between the two countries, from military equipment to troop deployment, which violates the UN resolutions.
Zinoviev said he has "carefully listened" to the South Korean government's position.
But the Russian Embassy in Seoul later posted on social media, quoting Zinoviev as saying, "cooperation between Russia and North Korea is in line with international law and does not go against South Korea's security interests." He also pointed out that Moscow and Seoul hold "opposing views" on the causes of rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
The South Korean government is mulling various measures over North Korea's involvement in the Ukraine war, including slapping independent sanctions against the North and seeking international actions.
Amid the U.S.' cautious stance of refraining from confirming the reports, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) here said last Friday that North Korea decided to dispatch around 12,000 troops to support Russia and has already begun deploying its first batch of special forces troops to the far eastern Russian city of Vladivostok, where they are being prepared to join the frontline.
Meanwhile, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said he spoke with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol over the phone on Monday. "North Korea sending troops to fight alongside Russia in Ukraine would mark a significant escalation," he wrote in a post on social media platform X.
