South Korea and Ukraine are locked in an escalating diplomatic dispute over who agreed what relating to the circumstances of two prisoners of struggle captured preventing for Russia.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, instructed the UN normal meeting final week that his nation had “despatched two North Korean prisoners of struggle to the Republic of Korea”.
Seoul had lengthy mentioned it will take the lads. However slightly than have fun, on Monday South Korea summoned Ukraine’s most senior diplomat in Seoul and demanded an apology.
Right here’s a quick information to what has occurred, and why.
Who’re the PoWs and what has occurred to them?
Ukrainian forces captured the 2 males in Russia’s Kursk area in January 2025. They had been amongst 1000’s of troops Pyongyang despatched to struggle for Moscow. Each males later mentioned they wished to go to South Korea, which regards North Koreans as its personal residents.
In July, Zelenskyy and South Korea’s president, Lee Jae Myung, agreed to resolve the difficulty whereas respecting the troopers’ “free will”. The captured pair reportedly arrived in South Korea by way of a 3rd nation earlier this month.
North Koreans arriving within the South as defectors are often questioned by the Nationwide Intelligence Service earlier than being despatched to a state resettlement centre, though delicate instances can reportedly bypass the centre.
Why is Seoul so indignant?
Seoul says Kyiv requested secrecy in regards to the switch, fearing home criticism for passing up the chance to alternate them for “a big quantity” of Ukrainian prisoners. South Korea says it agreed, citing the security of the 2 males and their households in addition to diplomatic and safety concerns.
After Zelenskyy revealed the switch in his UN speech, Lee mentioned on X that Ukraine had damaged a “non-disclosure settlement” and that this was regrettable. Zelenskyy’s adviser Dmytro Lytvyn responded on Fb that there had been no such settlement, prompting accusations from Lee’s critics that the president, whose approval ranking has hit a low of 37.9%, had lied.
Lee’s workplace referred to as Kyiv’s assertion “false” and mentioned its conduct “critically damages belief” between the 2 governments. On Monday, the international ministry summoned Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires, demanding an apology at governmental stage.
Was there truly an settlement?
South Korea’s international ministry instructed Ukraine’s envoy there had been a “clear settlement”. Requested by the Guardian the identical day whether or not something had been put in writing, the ministry mentioned solely that the 2 sides “had determined to deal with it confidentially”. Ukraine’s embassy in Seoul didn’t reply to a request for remark.
Has North Korea mentioned something?
No. South Korea’s unification ministry mentioned it had “not recognized any associated developments to date” and would proceed monitoring.
North Korea has glorified troopers who killed themselves slightly than be captured. The switch of two who survived and selected the South is “a deadly matter” for Pyongyang, says Cho Han-bum of the Korea Institute for Nationwide Unification. Having constructed a “heroic narrative” round its troops, the regime is unlikely to reveal the switch domestically, he says.
How massive a diplomatic incident is that this?
After Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, South Korea condemned Moscow’s actions, joined western sanctions and, in July, pledged a $100m help package deal. Nevertheless it has stored the struggle at arm’s size, refusing to ship weapons on to Kyiv, consistent with its follow of not supplying deadly arms to international locations at struggle. Earlier than the struggle, Russia was one in all South Korea’s greatest buying and selling companions. Lee’s authorities can also be eager to enhance relations with Pyongyang.
The row has turned that cautious help for Kyiv into open criticism, largely from Lee’s personal camp. Kim Byung-joo, a Democratic social gathering lawmaker, mentioned there was “no cause or want” to help Ukraine and has urged the federal government to assessment its support “instantly”.
