Top South Korean defense officials met Monday to discuss North Korea’s successive missile launches and the situation in Ukraine, according to Seoul’s Ministry of National Defense, while confirming the “successful test” of a domestically produced missile defense system.

At the meeting, defense minister Suh Wook reportedly suggested that Russia’s ongoing military invasion of Ukraine has implications for South Korea.

“Based on the lessons learned from the crisis in Ukraine, maintaining a strong national defense force is the only way to preserve peace,” the defense minister said, according to a ministry press release.

Monday’s meeting of defense officials came as