South Korea demands apology from Ukraine over disclosure of North's POW transfer

• The dispute escalated after Zelenskyy revealed the secret transfer during his address to the UN General Assembly.
• South Korea stated that secrecy was agreed upon to protect the safety of the soldiers,and  to manage broader diplomatic sensitivities.
• The two soldiers, captured in Russia's Kursk region in 2025, represent the first known North Korean POWs from the conflict to be transferred to South Korea.

South Korea summoned Ukraine's acting ambassador to Seoul on Monday to protest Kyiv's public disclosure of the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea, demanding an official explanation and apology over what Seoul termed a serious breach of a confidentiality agreement, according to The Korea Herald.

First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo called in Andrii Vieshkin, Ukraine's chargé d'affaires in Seoul, to the Foreign Ministry on Monday afternoon to convey the South Korean government's "grave position" regarding the controversy.

Park expressed "deep regret" that Ukraine had disclosed the transfer during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's address to the United Nations General Assembly without sufficient prior explanation or detailed consultations with Seoul, despite what the South Korean government described as a clear agreement between both nations to keep the operation secret.

Park also protested a subsequent statement from the Ukrainian presidential office denying that a confidentiality agreement existed, characterizing the denial as false. He warned that Kyiv's actions had "seriously undermined trust between the two governments" and risked damaging bilateral relations.

The diplomatic rift stems from the handling of two North Korean soldiers captured by Ukrainian forces in Russia's Kursk region in 2025, who later expressed a desire to settle in South Korea. 

Seoul maintained that secrecy was vital to ensure the safety of the soldiers and their families in North Korea, as well as to navigate delicate diplomatic and security concerns. South Korean officials added that Ukraine had initially requested confidentiality to avoid domestic criticism over forfeiting a potential POW exchange with Russia.

Vieshkin noted Seoul's position and stated he would accurately report the protest to his government in Kyiv.