Ukraine Transfers Two North Korean POWs to South Korea — SkimNews
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- Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on September 23, 2026 during his UN General Assembly address that Ukraine had transferred two captured North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea.
- The two North Korean soldiers were seized in Russia's Kursk region in January 2025—the first North Koreans captured alive since Pyongyang joined the war in 2024—and one tried to kill himself when taken prisoner, per Zelenskyy.
- Zelenskyy initially said in 2025 he would hand the soldiers to Kim Jong Un in exchange for Ukrainians held in Russia, but human rights groups urged repatriation to South Korea and South Korean media reported the men wanted to defect.
- South Korea's Foreign Ministry declined to confirm details of the handover, citing safety of the soldiers and their families, though Seoul said in June it would accept all North Korean POWs who fought for Russia and opposed any return to Pyongyang or Moscow.
- North Korea has deployed an estimated 14,000–15,000 troops to Russia since 2024, mostly in Kursk, and supplied millions of artillery rounds, ballistic missiles and rocket systems, according to Ukrainian and independent assessments cited in the address.
Why it matters: Ukraine's handover defies North Korea's expectation that captured soldiers would be funneled back through Kim Jong Un, instead aligning with South Korea's June policy. For Seoul, the POWs become both an intelligence asset and a diplomatic win, and the episode removes the bargaining leverage Zelenskyy once considered spending on Ukrainian prisoner swaps.
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