Ukraine Sent North Korean Prisoners of War to South Korea

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Wednesday that Ukraine has transferred two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea. The soldiers were captured in Russia's Kursk region in 2025 and their transfer follows months of consultations between Kyiv and Seoul.

Zelenskyy informed the U.N. General Assembly of the transfer but offered few additional details. "These guys are not easy to capture alive," he stated. "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."

The two soldiers were among thousands of North Korean troops deployed to support Russia's invasion of Ukraine. North Korea has been a key supplier of artillery shells and ballistic missiles to Russia. In parallel, Pyongyang has accelerated its own nuclear and missile programs, strengthening its ties with Moscow and Beijing to present a united front against the United States.

South Korea, the U.S., and their allies have expressed concern that Russia may provide advanced technologies to North Korea that could enhance its nuclear and missile capabilities.

Following the capture of the soldiers in Kursk in January 2025, South Korea had urged Kyiv not to return them to North Korea, citing potential persecution. Seoul indicated its willingness to accept the soldiers if they wished to resettle in South Korea. Media interviews at the time suggested the soldiers expressed a desire to relocate to the South.

In April 2025, North Korea and Russia confirmed that their soldiers had jointly repelled a Ukrainian incursion into Russia's Kursk border region. The exact number of North Korean soldiers deployed has not been disclosed, though South Korea's intelligence service estimated in April 2025 that approximately 15,000 North Korean troops had been sent to Russia since October 2024, with about 2,000 casualties.

South Korea's Foreign Ministry acknowledged ongoing consultations with Kyiv and other relevant parties regarding the matter, emphasizing that any resolution must respect the soldiers' free will and adhere to international law and humanitarian principles. However, the ministry declined to confirm specific details about the transfer, citing the sensitivity of the issue and the safety of the soldiers and their families.