South Korea Accuses Ukraine Of Breaching Confidentiality Agreement Over North Korean POW Transfer

Relations between South Korea and Ukraine have soured over the disclosure of the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war (POWs) to Seoul.

South Korea's presidential office on Sunday expressed "strong regret" over Ukraine's handling of the transfer, accusing Kyiv of violating a non-disclosure agreement and falsely denying its existence.

Last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the United Nations General Assembly that Ukraine had transferred two North Korean POWs to South Korea.

President Lee Jae Myung's office criticized the announcement, saying the confidentiality agreement was meant to protect the soldiers from potential danger in line with international law and humanitarian principles.

"President Lee Jae Myung's office expresses strong regret over Ukraine's unilateral disclosure [of the transfer] and its subsequent false announcement that there had not been a non-disclosure agreement," South Korea's senior presidential secretary for public relations, Seong Ghi-hong, was quoted by Yonhap News Agency as saying.

Yonhap reported that Ukraine's presidential office defended the disclosure, saying it released the information without extensive details and that it would have been strange to keep the entire transfer secret. Ukrainian media quoted a presidential source denying the existence of any confidentiality agreement with Seoul.

Seoul described the denial as "false" and said it "seriously hampers" bilateral trust and causes serious disruptions to bilateral friendship.

Seong added that the government was considering additional measures over the issue if necessary.

The two North Korean soldiers were captured by Ukrainian forces in Russia's Kursk region in January 2025.

Intelligence reports and defector testimonies have indicated that North Korean soldiers have resorted to self-detonation or suicide rather than be captured.

In his UN address, Zelenskyy said, "These guys are not easy to capture alive. One of them, when he realised he was going to be taken prisoner, tried to kill himself. And he was shocked that fate did not let him die."

South Korean media reported that the two soldiers had expressed a desire to defect to South Korea.

The POW issue was a key topic when Lee met Zelenskyy at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, in July. After the meeting, senior presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said both leaders agreed to resolve the status of North Korean POWs in accordance with international law.

That agreement built on an earlier understanding reached during the South Korea-Ukraine foreign ministers' meeting in March to cooperate on the POW issue.

According to South Korean intelligence, North Korea has deployed an estimated 14,000 to 15,000 soldiers to support Russia in its war with Ukraine since 2024, mainly in the Kursk border region. South Korean, Ukrainian and Western officials say more than 6,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed in the fighting.

The transfer comes as South Korea has backed efforts to revive dialogue with North Korea, while U.S. President Donald Trump has renewed his willingness to engage with Pyongyang.