Leftist South Korea Demands Ukraine Apologize After Zelensky Reveals North Korea Soldiers Shipped to Seoul

The leftist government of South Korea demanded a public apology on Sunday from the government of Ukraine after President Volodymyr Zelensky told the United Nations General Assembly last week that his troops had captured North Korean soldiers on the battlefield – and sent them to the South. South Korean officials, including President Lee Jae-myung, described Zelensky’s comments as “deeply regrettable” and claimed that the two countries had agreed to keep the transfer a secret. South Korean officials insisted that it was their Ukrainian counterparts who had demanded a nondisclosure pact, citing the potential political fallout in Ukraine from negative political sentiment towards freeing the North Koreans into Seoul’s custody, rather than using them to bargain for the freedom of Ukrainian prisoners of war. Ukrainian officials denied that any such pact to secrecy existed following the initial protest and have not, at press time, apologized. “We express strong regret over the Ukrainian government’s unilateral disclosure in violation of the confidentiality agreement, and its subsequent false public statement denying the existence of an agreement, and demand an official explanation and apology,” Seong Ghi-hong, senior presidential secretary for public relations, declared in an infuriated statement on Sunday, translated by the Korea JoongAng Daily. “We are also reviewing further necessary measures regarding this matter.” Seong’s statement noted that the Blue House, the presidential office in Seoul, was outraged by the disclosure at the General Assembly, but even moreso at subsequent denials that a nondisclosure agreement existed. “While it is a grave issue that the Ukrainian side unilaterally disclosed information, violating a bilateral confidentiality agreement without prior consultation or even notification,” Seong said, “it is equally serious that the Ukrainian presidential office’s press division falsely claimed no such agreement existed in response to our president’s legitimate, fact-based public remarks.” “Such actions severely undermine trust between the two governments and inflict significant damage on our friendly relations,” the spokesperson asserted. Seong was referring to a statement published on social media by President Lee on September 24 in which he condemned both the Ukrainian government and some South Korean politicians who questioned why such a humiliation for North Korea would be kept a secret. “The repatriation of North Korean prisoners is a highly sensitive issue with significant implications for diplomacy, national security, and the situation on the Korean Peninsula,” Lee wrote. “There were undoubtedly internal calls to publicize the repatriation, as doing so would have clearly helped boost approval ratings. However, after weighing the potential problems that public disclosure might cause, we concluded that keeping it private was the right course of action in every respect, and we reached a consensus to do so.” As for Ukraine, Lee wrote, “While I do not know the specific circumstances that led the Ukrainian side to break the agreement and go public, the situation is deeply regrettable.” Ukrainian President Zelensky revealed the prisoner of war transfers during his General Assembly speech as part of a greater argument before the world that ignoring the ongoing Russian invasion of the country was allowing for Russia to internationalize the conflict and endanger more people. He questioned the logic of Pyongyang sacrificing potentially thousands of people to help Russia colonize a European country – “Why should Koreans give their lives in a war against Ukraine?” – accusing communist dictator Kim Jong-un of trading North Korean lives “like currency” to pay for battlefield experience and improved military technology. “Recently, we sent two North Korean prisoners of war to the Republic of Korea. These guys are not easy to capture alive,” he revealed. “One of them, when he realized he was going to be taken prisoner, tried to kill himself. And he was shocked that fate didn’t let him die. This is how they raise people in the North. It’s reality.” “They take away their freedom. They take away their right to choose. And they drill into them that they must die, no matter what. Do you really want to give such a force more time to learn how to wage war? This has already been going on for five years,” the president continued. Lee’s administration notably warned in its statement on Sunday that it was considering “additional measures” against Ukraine in response to the disclosure. It is not clear at press time what such “measures” would look like. On Monday, however, the South Korean Foreign Ministry summoned Ukrainian Ambassador Andrii Vieshkin, a form of expressing official complaint. The contents of any conversations at the Foreign Ministry have remained confidential at press time. Korea JoongAng Daily reported on Monday that, while the identities of the transferred North Koreans remain unknown, they are believed to be “staying at the North Korean Refugee Protection Center in Siheung, Gyeonggi,” a facility intended to process North Korean defectors to ensure they are not spies and help them with their transition out of living in the repressive communist state. A source told the newspaper the men are “in good health” but in need of medical care to recover from battlefield injuries. In January 2025, Zelensky published videos on social media of two men he claimed were North Korean soldiers captured by his troops while fighting for Russia. “Ukraine is ready to hand over Kim Jong Un’s soldiers to him if he can organize their exchange for our warriors who are being held captive in Russia,” he announced at the time. “For those North Korean soldiers who do not wish to return, there may be other options available. In particular, those who express a desire to bring peace closer by spreading the truth about this war in Korean will be given that opportunity.” Follow Frances Martel on Facebook and Twitter.