MIKTA leaders call for adherence to UN Charter amid concerns over NK-Russia military cooperation

The leaders of South Korea and four other middle-power countries called Monday for all UN members to comply with the UN Charter and Security Council resolutions, as concerns deepened over North Korea's troop dispatch to help Russia in its war against Ukraine.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit held in Rio de Janeiro.

The leaders of the MIKTA group, named after the initials of Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey, and Australia, issued a joint statement underscoring their commitment to enhance cooperation to tackle regional and global challenges.

"At a time of multiple crises and geopolitical confrontation, MIKTA Leaders reaffirmed their commitment to a safe, peaceful, just, equal, inclusive, sustainable and prosperous world for all, calling on all UN Member States to uphold the United Nations Charter and UN Resolutions, including those adopted by the Security Council," the statement said.

While South Korea and Australia have explicitly condemned military ties between Pyongyang and Moscow as violations of the UN Charter and Security Council resolutions, the MIKTA group refrained from addressing specific instances in detail. (Yonhap)