Sybiha: Ukraine will heal the ‘diplomatic misunderstanding’ with South Korea over two North Korean prisoners

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on Thursday evening that Kyiv is working to heal what he called a “diplomatic misunderstanding” with South Korea, after President Volodymyr Zelensky publicly revealed the transfer of two North Korean soldiers captured in the war against Russia.

“I would not like to call it an incident. Let us say it is a diplomatic misunderstanding,” Sybiha told reporters, as The Independent reports. “I really hope that this situation will be resolved in the very near future and we are working on that. For us, South Korea is an important country. And I really hope for the momentum, continuity and concrete results that we are really achieving with them.”

Sybiha’s reaction comes after South Korean President Lee Jae Myung threatened on Friday with “additional measures” against Ukraine if Kyiv does not accept the existence of the confidentiality agreement on the repatriation of the two prisoners and does not apologise publicly. In a post on X, Lee expressed “deep regret” at Ukraine’s response, accusing Kyiv of undermining the head of state of South Korea.

Zelensky had revealed last week, during his address to the UN General Assembly, that the two prisoners had been sent to South Korea — while Seoul expected the transfer to remain secret.

The two North Koreans were captured in January 2025 in the Kursk region, the first captured alive since Pyongyang entered the war on Russia’s side in 2024. North Korea has signed a strategic partnership agreement with Russia, including a mutual defence pact, and has sent around 14,000 troops to help Moscow. According to Zelensky, more than 8,000 North Korean troops remain in Russia, while another 10,000 are being trained for a future deployment.