Members of the Japanese government, as well as the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), are studying the option of transferring lethal weapons to Ukraine, the Kyodo agency reported on Wednesday with reference to TASS.

Sources familiar with the talks told Kyodo News that Japanese authorities currently adhere to legal guidelines that allow the Tokyo government to transfer lethal weapons only to its military production and development partners.

But, according to quoted sources, the ruling party is promoting the scenario of such assistance to Ukraine in the context of the rotating chairmanship of the G7 group and intends to organize a summit of its leaders in Hiroshima next month.

Kyodo notes that several LDP members plan to hold a series of meetings with their coalition partners in the Komeito party until the end of April to discuss the issue.

The Komeito party has so far opposed the idea, instead supporting the expansion of exports of non-lethal equipment. Last year, Japan sent to Ukraine several batches of military equipment from the reserves of the Japan Self-Defense Forces.

Among the equipment sent were bulletproof vests, helmets, winter uniforms, rations, tents, plumbing and electric generators. The Tokyo government has also repeatedly sent generators and other humanitarian aid to Kyiv, totaling about ¥210 billion (about $1.5 billion).

News that Japan may send lethal aid to Ukraine comes amid an unprecedented escalation of tensions with Russia since the end of World War II, as the Japanese government joined Western sanctions imposed on Moscow after the start of the war in Ukraine.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida paid an official visit to Kyiv in March, and Russia sent strategic bombers near Japan shortly before his trip.

South Korea can also send weapons to Ukraine

Also on Wednesday, the Reuters agency noted that the government in Seoul may expand support to Ukraine beyond humanitarian and economic aid if it is subjected to a large-scale attack on the civilian population.

In an interview with Reuters ahead of his state visit to the US next week, Yoon said the government in Seoul is looking at how it can help protect and rebuild Ukraine, just as South Korea received international aid during the 1950-53 Korean War. .

“If a situation arises that the international community cannot approve, such as any large-scale attack on civilians, a massacre or a serious violation of the laws of war, it may be difficult for us to insist on humanitarian or financial support alone,” he said. Yun said.

This is the first time Seoul has hinted at a willingness to supply weapons to Ukraine, more than a year after ruling out lethal aid.

A key U.S. ally and major producer of artillery munitions, South Korea has so far tried to avoid antagonizing Russia over its companies operating there and rising tensions with North Korea and China.

According to an investigation published by Reuters last month, South Korea has tacitly approved the transfer to Kyiv of weapons containing components produced in the Asian country and officially says it does not assist Ukraine militarily.

The news came as the United States called on its allies and partners around the world, from South Korea and Japan to Israel, to provide aid, including military assistance, to the government in Kyiv.

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