Mike Pence, who was the vice president during Donald Trump’s initial administration, advocated on the 23rd for the indirect use of South Korean-produced intercept missiles via the United States, highlighting the critical need for missile defense assistance to Ukraine, which is experiencing Russian ballistic missile attacks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy recently referred to North Korea’s military reinforcements and said, “We hope to get support from South Korea in the area of air defense systems where we are deficient,” noting, “Although South Korea has legal limitations, we anticipate such collaboration and that diplomatic authorities are engaged.”
Pence, currently in Kyiv, Ukraine, made an appearance on CNN the same day, stating, “As winter arrives, Ukraine will encounter significant weaknesses.” This highlighted the gravity of the situation, where Ukraine is not getting enough intercept missiles because the U.S. is facing a shortage of air defense missiles due to the Iran-related circumstances. However, when questioned if Ukraine is experiencing damage because the U.S. has run out of Patriot missiles and its stockpiles are low, Pence responded, “I don’t perceive it that way,” echoing President Trump’s position.
Pence noted that Zelenskyy asked the U.S., “If you supply just 5% of your Patriot missile inventory, I think that alone would be enough to get through the winter.” However, he also mentioned, “I think there might be chances for other (U.S.) allies. South Korea has advanced interceptors, and there have been several discussions between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and South Korea this week.” This relates to Zelenskyy’s recent appeal for air defense assistance from South Korea. Pence said, “This could be a chance for President Lee Jae Myung to go further and offer these interceptor missiles, which the U.S. could send to the Middle East, Ukraine, or European partners.”
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