South Korea has warned that it could take additional measures against Ukraine unless Kyiv acknowledges what Seoul says was a confidentiality agreement covering the transfer of two captured North Korean soldiers and issues a public apology.
President Lee Jae Myung said Friday that South Korea would respond if Ukraine continued to reject Seoul’s account of the agreement. The dispute has opened an unusual diplomatic rift between two countries that have maintained increasingly close ties since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The disagreement centers on two North Korean soldiers captured by Ukrainian forces while fighting alongside Russia. The men were later transferred to South Korea after expressing a desire to resettle there.
Seoul says the transfer was supposed to remain confidential because of concerns about the soldiers’ safety, their families in North Korea and the political sensitivity surrounding Pyongyang’s military involvement in the war.
The dispute became public after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy disclosed the transfer during his address to the United Nations General Assembly. South Korea said the announcement breached an understanding between the two governments. Ukraine has denied that a formal confidentiality agreement existed.
Lee said South Korea expected Kyiv to acknowledge the agreement and apologize publicly. He did not specify what measures Seoul could take if the dispute remained unresolved.
Ukraine has sought to lower tensions. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha described the issue as a diplomatic misunderstanding and said Kyiv hoped to resolve the disagreement quickly, while stressing the importance Ukraine places on its relationship with South Korea.
South Korean officials have argued that the public disclosure created security concerns for the soldiers and potentially for relatives they left behind in North Korea.
The case is particularly sensitive because North Koreans who reach South Korea can qualify for citizenship and government support under Seoul’s legal system. The two soldiers had reportedly indicated that they did not want to return to North Korea.
Their capture drew international attention because they were among the first North Korean troops taken alive after Pyongyang sent forces to support Russia’s military campaign.
North Korea has significantly expanded its military relationship with Moscow since the war began. Pyongyang has supplied Russia with artillery ammunition and missiles and has deployed thousands of troops, primarily to Russia’s Kursk region. Ukrainian officials say thousands more could be prepared for deployment.
The presence of North Korean troops has also created a new intelligence challenge for Seoul. South Korean authorities have worked closely with Ukraine to learn more about North Korean battlefield tactics, equipment and troop deployments.
That cooperation makes the current dispute more complicated for both governments.
South Korea has provided humanitarian and financial assistance to Ukraine but has stopped short of supplying lethal weapons directly. Seoul has also imposed sanctions connected to Russia’s war while maintaining that its defense policy must take account of security threats on the Korean Peninsula.
Ukraine, meanwhile, has repeatedly sought greater international pressure on North Korea over its military support for Russia.
The dispute also comes as President Lee attempts to reduce tensions with Pyongyang and revive dialogue between the two Koreas. Relations remain strained, with recent incidents along the heavily fortified border adding to concerns about renewed confrontation.
South Korea and Ukraine have continued diplomatic discussions in an effort to resolve the disagreement, but Seoul’s demand for an apology has raised the stakes.
For both countries, the dispute reaches beyond the fate of two soldiers. It touches on intelligence sharing, humanitarian concerns and the increasingly complicated relationship between the war in Ukraine and security on the Korean Peninsula.
