Seoul Summons Ukrainian Envoy After Zelensky Reveals Secret POW Transfer

South Korea has summoned Ukraine’s acting ambassador after President Volodymyr Zelensky revealed that his government had transferred two captured North Korean soldiers to Seoul.

Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo formally protested to Andrii Veshkin, expressing “strong regret” that Zelensky disclosed the transfer, which Seoul maintains was meant to remain confidential.

The two North Koreans, part of thousands deployed to support Russia in the Ukraine conflict, had previously told local media they wished to be sent to South Korea.

President Lee Jae Myung called the disclosure “greatly disappointing,” describing the transfer as a “highly sensitive issue” with implications for national security.

Ukraine’s foreign ministry declined to comment when approached by the BBC.

Earlier in 2025, Ukraine reported capturing the two North Korean soldiers as prisoners of war in Russia’s Kursk Oblast.

Following more than a year of negotiations between Seoul and Kyiv, Zelensky announced the transfer at the UN General Assembly last Wednesday, noting the soldiers had not been “easy to capture alive.”

Seoul confirmed the transfer but sharply criticized Zelensky for allegedly violating an agreement to keep it secret.

President Lee’s office stated the secrecy was partly intended to protect the soldiers’ families, and that Kyiv also wanted the transfer kept quiet to avoid accusations it had forfeited leverage to exchange the soldiers for Ukrainian prisoners of war.

Lee’s office clarified that Ukraine had indicated the soldiers would be mentioned in Zelensky’s address, but not the fact of their transfer.

The dispute intensified when Zelensky’s office denied the existence of a non-disclosure agreement between the two countries.

Seoul demanded an apology for “announcing a falsehood,” asserting that Ukraine’s actions had seriously undermined trust between the nations.

Lee faced domestic backlash following Zelensky’s disclosure, with the South Korean opposition accusing him of concealing the transfer to appease Pyongyang.

Lee, whose party favors engagement with the North, has struggled to reopen peace talks.

While Seoul has expressed sympathy for Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion, it has refused to abandon its longstanding policy of not supplying lethal weapons to nations engaged in active conflict.

After North Korean troops deployed to support Russia in 2024, Kyiv increased pressure on South Korea to provide advanced anti-air missiles to shield Ukraine’s energy infrastructure from Russian drone and missile strikes.

“When North Korea actively participates in a war in Europe, South Korea cannot remain a distant observer,” said Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior Zelensky adviser.

“The transfer of defense technologies and capabilities from Seoul to Kyiv is not merely about aiding Ukraine; it is about South Korea safeguarding its own long-term security by countering the expansion of an aggressive totalitarian axis.”

This July, Seoul announced a $100 million assistance package to Ukraine. Lee’s office described it as an expansion of earlier non-lethal aid, including helmets, personal armor, and medical equipment.

Russia’s foreign ministry warned it would have “no choice but to retaliate” if South Korea armed Ukraine, without specifying the response.

South Korea has traditionally cultivated ties with countries opposed to the US.

Since the Soviet Union’s collapse, it has deepened trade and diplomatic relations with Russia, which borders North Korea, regarding Moscow and Beijing as key partners in influencing Pyongyang.

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