South Korea Accuses Zelenskyy of Breaking POW Secrecy Pact

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of violating a confidentiality agreement after Zelenskyy revealed the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea during a United Nations General Assembly speech in New York. The soldiers were captured by Ukrainian forces in Russia's Kursk region in January 2025. Zelenskyy noted that the soldiers were "not easy to capture alive" and mentioned that one had attempted suicide upon capture.

President Lee described the disclosure as a "callous and irresponsible attitude" and a betrayal of trust intended to protect national security and the lives of the soldiers. While the transfer was agreed upon in June, the Lee administration had kept the matter secret. Ukrainian officials countered these claims, asserting that Seoul was informed of the speech in advance and that the announcement was a simple statement of fact.

The incident triggered a political clash in Seoul. The ruling Democratic Party defended the secrecy as a necessary safety measure. Conversely, the opposition People Power Party criticized the administration for its lack of transparency, with some members questioning if the government was too afraid of offending Kim Jong-un. The two former soldiers, who expressed an intention to defect, are now in South Korean government care and are undergoing a high-risk resettlement process due to their knowledge of North Korean military involvement in the Russia-Ukraine War.