SEOUL, January 19. /TASS/. Russia would like South Korea to be among the first to return to the list of friendly countries, Russia's new ambassador to Seoul Georgy Zinovyev said at a meeting with Russian journalists.

He opined that Seoul would not join the ranks of Russia's "opponents" and said that South Korea's role as a mediator in the conflict between Russia and the West was "unlikely," since the Euro-Atlantic states "do not need it [Seoul]." According to him, the West could use direct contacts with Russia if it wanted to.

"For us, it would be enough for [South] Korea to remain in the quality in which we perceive it: the most friendly among unfriendly countries, and in the long run it would be the first or among the first among unfriendly countries to return to the ranks of friendly countries," he explained.

South Korea imposed sanctions on Russia after it launched the special military operation in Ukraine. In response, Moscow added Seoul to the list of unfriendly countries.