Zelenskyy UN POW Disclosure Sparks South Korea Diplomatic Clash — SkimNews
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- Zelenskyy told the UN General Assembly on September 23 that Ukraine had sent two North Korean POWs captured during fighting in Russia's Kursk region in January 2025 to South Korea, noting both had expressed a wish to resettle there.
- South Korea's Foreign Ministry summoned Ukraine's ambassador Andrii Vieshkin and demanded an explanation plus an official apology for the "unilateral disclosure" of the transfer, citing a prior agreement to keep it confidential.
- Zelenskyy's spokesperson Dmytro Lytvyn wrote on Facebook that no confidentiality agreement existed and that it was wrong to keep secret where such prisoners were being transferred.
- South Korean presidential spokesperson Kim Sung-wan called Lytvyn's denials false, saying Ukraine had asked for secrecy partly to avoid domestic criticism if the North Koreans weren't swapped for Ukrainian POWs held in Russia.
- Russia demanded the return of the two North Koreans and for six months refused to release any Ukrainian POWs in swaps because it wanted the North Koreans back, according to Asia-Pacific expert Nataliya Butyrska of the New Europe Center.
- Analysts say the crisis is tangled in South Korean domestic politics, with the opposition accusing President Lee Jae Myung of trying to gain favor with the North, and the Asan Institute's Shim Sangmin noting the Lee government is "more open" to reestablishing ties with Russia, complicating cooperation with Ukraine.
Why it matters: South Korea currently delivers weapons to Poland, Finland, the Czech Republic, and Romania but not Ukraine directly; the clash now makes any future technology cooperation or indirect military ties less likely, while Lee's outreach to both North Korea and Russia signals Seoul is prioritizing inter-Korean détente over backing Kyiv.
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