SEOUL-- President Moon Jae-in on Friday instructed his aides to take preemptive measures to ensure the safety of South Koreans and minimize the economic impacts in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Moon ordered his aides to check the situation in Ukraine and respond preemptively through a government task force to deal with the Ukrainian crisis, presidential spokesperson Park Kyung-mee said.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine triggered the biggest security crisis in Europe since the Cold War, drawing global condemnations and tougher sanctions from the U.S. and other Western nations.

Moon said South Korea will join economic sanctions against Russia.

Source: Yonhap News Agency