South Korea demands Ukraine apology over POW secrecy breach — SkimNews
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- South Korea's presidential office demanded an official explanation and apology, accusing Kyiv of unilaterally disclosing the transfer of two North Korean prisoners and then falsely denying a non-disclosure agreement existed.
- Senior presidential secretary Seong Ghi-hong said Ukraine disclosed the transfer in President Zelenskyy's UN General Assembly address without sufficient prior consultation, calling the subsequent denial of the agreement a serious breach of trust between the two governments.
- South Korean President Lee Jae Myung posted on X that "it was appropriate in every aspect not to disclose" the transfer and called Ukraine's disclosure "deeply regrettable."
- The two North Korean soldiers were captured by Ukraine in Russia's Kursk region in January 2025 — the first North Korean troops taken alive since Pyongyang entered the war in 2024 to assist Russia.
- South Korea had declined to confirm the soldiers' arrival, citing safety concerns for the prisoners and family members still in North Korea; the transfer followed the soldiers' expressed desire to go to Seoul.
- According to the presidential office, Ukraine had pushed for confidentiality to avoid domestic criticism that it had given up an opportunity to exchange the soldiers for Ukrainian prisoners.
Why it matters: South Korea took the POWs on confidential terms explicitly citing prisoner and family safety — making Ukraine's public disclosure a direct breach. The fallout damages the intelligence-sharing channel between two Western-aligned partners while North Korean troops actively fight alongside Russia in Kursk.
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