Cars are ready to ship at the export loading dock at Hyundai Motor's Ulsan plant. Yonhap

By Kim Hyun-bin

Local automakers have been closely monitoring the escalating Russia-Ukraine military tensions, as they export a significant number of vehicles to both countries, according to company officials Wednesday.

The Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association (KAMA) expressed its concerns to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy over a possible decline in demand and disruption in the supply of parts in the event of a war between Russia and Ukraine, calling for a contingency plan.

Last year, about half of Korea's exports to Russia were made up of automobiles and auto parts, and $2.496 billion worth of cars were exported. Auto parts ranked second with exports of $1.454 billion. Automobiles and related parts accounted for 29.2 percent and 15 percent of Russia's total imports, respectively.

KAMA predicted that in the event of continuing Russia-Ukraine tensions, domestic sales in Russia would decrease by 10 percent and if the situation expands into an all-out war, a 29 percent drop is predicted to occur.