South Korea summons Ukrainian envoy after Kyiv reveals North Korean prisoner transfer

Diplomatic summons in Seoul

On Monday, South Korea's foreign ministry summoned Ukraine's acting ambassador, Andrii Vieshkin, to lodge a protest over Kyiv's public disclosure of the transfer of two captured North Korean soldiers. South Korean officials stated that Ukraine broke a bilateral confidentiality agreement regarding the operation. First Vice Minister Park Yoon-joo met with Vieshkin in Seoul, demanding an official explanation and an apology from the Ukrainian government. Seoul expressed strong regret over statements from Kyiv denying that any non-disclosure pact existed between the two administrations. Vieshkin stated that he listened to Seoul's position and would report the diplomatic complaint directly to his government.

Announcement at the United Nations

The dispute began after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed the prisoner transfer during his address to the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukrainian forces had sent two captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea after taking them prisoner in Russia's Kursk region. He described the capture of the soldiers on the battlefield and criticized Pyongyang's military deployment in support of Moscow.

“These guys are not easy to capture alive. One of them, when he realised he was going to be taken prisoner, tried to kill himself, and he was shocked that fate did not let him die.”

Zelenskyy previously noted that he would consider exchanging North Korean captives for Ukrainian prisoners held in Russia, but human rights groups urged their transfer to South Korea due to defection requests and risks of retribution.

Ukraine defends public disclosure

Ukrainian officials rejected accusations of violating diplomatic trust, maintaining that no secrecy agreement governed the transfer of the soldiers. Presidential advisor Dmytro Lytwyn stated that Ukrainian transparency guided the announcement at the international forum.

“From the entire story, which is long and full of details, we only announced the fact itself that they were sent to the Republic of Korea.”

Lytwyn added that Ukraine operates as an open country and argued that secretly transferring the captives would have been unusual. The Ukrainian presidential office maintained that both nations understood the transfer would eventually be shared publicly.

South Korean security concerns

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung expressed disappointment on social media, emphasizing that the transfer involved sensitive security considerations on the Korean peninsula. The South Korean presidential office warned that Kyiv's disclosure and subsequent denials damaged mutual trust between both governments. Senior presidential secretary for public relations Seong Ghi-hong stated on Sunday that Seoul is examining further measures in response to the situation. South Korean authorities had avoided public confirmation to protect the defectors and prevent retaliatory action against their family members remaining in North Korea.

Broader geopolitical context

The two soldiers were captured in January 2025 during fighting in the Kursk region, marking the first live North Korean prisoners taken by Ukraine. North Korea deployed troops to assist Russian forces following a mutual defense agreement signed between Moscow and Pyongyang in 2024. South Korea currently restricts direct lethal arms exports to active conflict zones, though it has supplied munitions indirectly through the United States. The diplomatic dispute develops as President Lee Jae Myung seeks to reopen unconditional dialogue with Pyongyang, while US President Donald Trump has also expressed renewed interest in diplomatic engagement with North Korea.