South Korea expressed regret over Ukraine's disclosure of the transfer of two North Korean prisoners

South Korea expressed regret over Ukraine's disclosure of the transfer of two North Korean prisoners

On Sunday, October 5, Seoul "deeply regretted" what it called the "unilateral disclosure" of the agreement with Ukraine to keep the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea a secret.

Yonhap news agency reported that the South Korean presidential office also rejected Kyiv's announcement that there was no agreement to keep this transfer confidential.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced last Wednesday at the UN General Assembly that Ukraine had transferred two North Korean soldiers captured during the war with Russia to South Korea.

Zelenskyy said that these two soldiers were recently transferred to South Korea after being captured during the war alongside Russian forces against Ukraine. Afterward, Lee Jae-myung, the president of South Korea, said that the disclosure of this transfer by Ukraine is "very regrettable" and added that both sides had agreed not to announce this issue.

Yonhap quoted Sung Ji-hong, South Korea's senior presidential secretary for public affairs, who reported that the presidential office stated in a declaration: "We deeply regret the unilateral disclosure (of this transfer) by Ukraine and the country's subsequent false announcement that there was no agreement to maintain confidentiality on the matter."

This South Korean official added that the government is considering further steps related to this issue if necessary.

Ukraine captured these two North Korean soldiers in January 2025 in the Kursk region of Russia. They were the first North Korean soldiers captured alive since Pyongyang's entry into the Russia-Ukraine war in 2024. The transfer of these two prisoners took place while South Korea supports efforts to resume dialogue with North Korea.