Russian President Vladimir Putin said on the 15th (local time) that he hopes relations with Korea will be restored.
According to the RIA Novosti news agency, President Putin said in a speech at a credentials presentation ceremony for ambassadors to Russia held at the Kremlin in Moscow that day, "In the past, the two countries maintained a practical approach and achieved really good results in trade and business," and "We hope to restore relations with Korea."
Regarding the current bilateral relationship, President Putin said, "Unfortunately, much of the positive foundation in interactions between us and Korea has been wasted."
Korea joined the West's sanctions against Russia after Russia launched its "special military operation" in Ukraine in Feb. 2022, and Russia responded by designating Korea an unfriendly country, worsening relations between the two countries.
In particular, as Russia signed a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty with North Korea in June 2024 and North Korea dispatched troops to Russia, deepening their alignment, the outlook for restoring South Korea-Russia relations has become complicated.
Lee Seok-bae, Korea's ambassador to Russia who took office in Oct. last year, also attended the credentials presentation ceremony that day. The presentation of credentials is the procedure by which the head of state of the sending country delivers the letter of credence given to the new ambassador to the head of state of the receiving country.