The unusually sharp rebuke escalated a dispute over whether the two governments had agreed to keep the transfer secret. The presidential office said Ukraine itself had requested confidentiality, directly challenging Ukrainian officials’ denials that such an agreement existed.
Sung Ki-hong, senior presidential secretary for public relations and communications, said Seoul was considering further measures over both the disclosure and Kyiv’s subsequent account of the negotiations.
“We express strong regret over the unilateral disclosure in violation of the agreement and the false public statement that no confidentiality agreement existed,” Sung said in a statement. “We demand an official explanation and apology and are reviewing further necessary measures.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed the transfer during his address to the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Wednesday. “Recently, we sent two North Korean prisoners of war to the Republic of Korea,” he said.
President Lee Jae Myung subsequently accused Ukraine of breaking an agreement to keep the operation confidential.
Ukrainian presidential communications adviser Dmytro Lytvyn denied that account, saying: “There was no such agreement.”
Sung disclosed in detail how the two governments had conducted extensive consultations through multiple channels, claiming it had been Ukraine that requested secrecy because the transfer was highly sensitive at home.
Kyiv feared domestic criticism that sending the North Korean soldiers to South Korea meant giving up an opportunity to exchange them for a larger number of Ukrainian prisoners, he added.
Seoul agreed to confidentiality after considering the safety of the soldiers and their families, along with diplomatic and national security concerns, he said, accusing Ukraine of disclosing the transfer unilaterally without prior consultation or even notification.
His account differed from an earlier explanation by a senior South Korean presidential official, who said Kyiv had warned Seoul before Zelenskyy’s speech that the soldiers could be mentioned but had not clearly explained how. Seoul had told Ukraine that the transfer itself should not be made public.
Sung said the disclosure was a serious problem, but Kyiv’s denial of a confidentiality agreement had further undermined trust between the governments and fueled domestic accusations that Lee had lied.
“This is an act that seriously harms friendly relations between the two countries,” he said.
A source in the Ukrainian presidential office previously told RBC-Ukraine that Kyiv had made no promise of confidentiality and that the Ukrainian public had a right to know how prisoner-related matters were handled. The source argued that Ukraine had disclosed the transfer without revealing sensitive operational details.
The two North Korean soldiers were captured by Ukrainian forces in Russia’s Kursk region in January 2025 after being deployed in support of Moscow’s war. Both later expressed a desire to go to South Korea.
Seoul had previously declined to confirm whether or when they had arrived, citing concerns for their safety and that of their families in North Korea.
Lee defended the secrecy on Thursday, saying the safety of those involved and national security considerations took precedence over any political benefit from announcing the transfer.
AJP Takewaways:
- Seoul demands an apology: South Korea accused Ukraine of breaching a confidentiality agreement over the transfer of two North Korean POWs and warned of serious damage to bilateral ties.
- Conflicting accounts deepen the dispute: Seoul says Kyiv requested secrecy over domestic political concerns, while Ukrainian officials deny any confidentiality agreement existed.
- Further measures under review: The presidential office is weighing its response as the disclosure fuels an opposition challenge to Lee’s handling of the transfer.
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