Ukrainian and South Korean diplomats spoke on the phone about the repatriation of North Korean prisoners of war on Monday, according to Seoul’s outlet Yonhap News Agency.
Newsweek reached out to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine for comment via email outside of business hours.
Newsweek also reached out to the South Korean embassy in the U.K. for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Due to Russia suffering from a shortage of manpower, North Korean soldiers began playing a crucial part in the escalation of the war with Ukraine in late 2024, particularly at the frontlines.
South Korea, which has previously provided humanitarian aid to Ukraine, could risk the ire of both North Korea and Russia by taking in Pyongyang’s prisoners of war. Seoul has taken in 34,000 North Korean defectors since the late 1990s.
What To Know
Seoul’s Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul spoke with his Ukrainian counterpart, Andrii Sybiha, about the captured Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) soldiers and said that South Korea is willing to take North Korean prisoners of war in, as they are considered South Korean citizens under the country’s constitution.
Cho also noted that Seoul will accept the North Korean soldiers’ defection if they express a desire to do so.
Ukraine captured its first two North Korean soldiers alive in January, after which they were given medical care and taken into custody by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) in Kyiv. Two weeks prior, Kyiv had captured a wounded North Korean soldier who later died of his injuries.
Seoul’s National Intelligence Agency said in January that the two DPRK soldiers who were captured by Kyiv’s forces did not choose to defect and seek asylum in South Korea.
North Korean troops were first confirmed to be in Kursk in October 2024 by NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, and it is estimated that Pyongyang deployed approximately 12,000 soldiers to fight alongside Russian soldiers in the war with Ukraine.
Ukraine said in late February that approximately 4,000, or one-third of the DPRK troops deployed have been injured or killed in battle.
This is not the first time that South Korea has weighed in on the global conversation regarding the presence of North Korean soldiers in the war with Ukraine, as Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said that Pyongyang was preparing to deploy more troops and send additional equipment to Russia after more than 1,000 soldiers had been killed in December 2024.
North Korean soldiers deployed to Russia have reportedly played an integral role in Moscow’s recent advancements in Kursk, and Andriy Kovalenko, an official on Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, said that they are storming the frontlines in “columns.”
What People Are Saying
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Sybiha wrote: “While in New Delhi, I had a good call with Foreign Minister of the Republic of Korea @FMChoTaeyul. I informed my counterpart about the Jeddah meeting, Ukraine’s commitment to peace, and further steps. We discussed the deepening Russia-DPRK cooperation and the serious risks it poses for the security in Europe, on the Korean Peninsula, and in the Indo-Pacific. I am grateful to the Republic of Korea for its solidarity with Ukraine.”
Referring to a report by the South Korean news channel YTN, Yeonmi Park, a North Korean defector and author, wrote on X: “How low can @ZelenskyyUa get? Ukraine is violating international law, according to this report: ‘There have been reports that Ukraine attempted to link the repatriation of North Korean prisoners of war with arms trade with South Korea. This is a clear violation of international law and an act that ignores the principles of humanitarianism. The repatriation of POW should be carried out without coercion and according to the free will of the prisoners, according to the Geneva Conventions.'”
After the capture of the North Korean soldiers in January, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on X: “Our soldiers have captured North Korean military personnel in the Kursk region. Two soldiers, though wounded, survived and were transported to Kyiv, where they are now communicating with the Security Service of Ukraine. This was not an easy task: Russian forces and other North Korean military personnel usually execute their wounded to erase any evidence of North Korea’s involvement in the war against Ukraine.”
“I am grateful to the soldiers of Tactical Group No. 84 of the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as our paratroopers, who captured these two individuals. As with all prisoners of war, these two North Korean soldiers are receiving the necessary medical assistance. I have instructed the Security Service of Ukraine to grant journalists access to these prisoners. The world needs to know the truth about what is happening.”
What Happens Next
North Korea has not responded to South Korea’s statement regarding taking in Pyongyang’s prisoners of war in Ukraine.
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