South Korea says it will recall ambassador to Ukraine over North Korean prisoner dispute
Seoul announced the diplomatic step after Ukraine disclosed the transfer of two captured North Korean soldiers. The countries dispute whether the transfer was meant to remain confidential.
South Korea said on Thursday, 8 October, that it would recall its ambassador to Ukraine after Kyiv disclosed the transfer of two captured North Korean soldiers to Seoul. The decision deepens a diplomatic dispute over whether the transfer was meant to remain confidential and whether the disclosure could endanger the soldiers’ families in North Korea.
South Korea’s foreign ministry said it would continue consultations with Ukraine and hoped outstanding issues would be resolved amicably, according to CNA. The announcement establishes Seoul’s decision to recall the ambassador; the reports do not establish when he would leave his post.
Why Seoul objected to the prisoner disclosure
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy disclosed the transfer during a speech to the UN General Assembly in September. Euronews dates the disclosure to 23 September. The BBC reports that the two soldiers had been captured while fighting for Russia and had previously told local media they wanted to go to South Korea. Neither report identifies them or establishes their present circumstances.
Seoul says Ukraine broke an agreement to keep the transfer secret. Zelenskyy’s office says no such confidentiality agreement existed. The competing accounts leave both the existence and terms of any agreement unresolved. According to the BBC, South Korea’s presidential office said it had expected Zelenskyy to mention the soldiers in his speech, but had not expected him to reveal their transfer.
South Korea says disclosure could put the prisoners’ families in North Korea at risk. Its presidential office said protecting the families was one reason the transfer had been kept confidential, the BBC reports. The office also said Kyiv had wanted to avoid criticism that transferring the soldiers meant giving up a possible exchange for Ukrainian prisoners of war. The reported concern about the families does not establish that they have been harmed or show their current safety.
How the dispute escalated
South Korean Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo lodged a formal complaint with Ukrainian counterpart Andrii Vieshkin in September, according to the BBC. CNA reports that Seoul also summoned Ukraine’s ambassador and warned of unspecified further measures before announcing its decision to recall its own envoy. The recall announcement is the latest identified diplomatic step in that sequence.
President Lee Jae Myung called the disclosure ‘greatly disappointing’ and described the transfer as a ‘highly sensitive issue’ affecting national security, the BBC reports. Ukraine has rejected Seoul’s account of a confidentiality agreement. Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, described the episode as a diplomatic misunderstanding and expressed hope for a swift resolution, according to Euronews.
The countries also differ over whether an apology was given. South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said earlier this week that he had received an apology from his Ukrainian counterpart, but that it fell short of Seoul’s expectations. The BBC reports that Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi told reporters on Wednesday that Sybiha had not apologised. Those statements do not settle what was said between the ministers.
What the recall means for relations with Ukraine
The dispute comes amid South Korea’s support for Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion. Seoul has maintained a policy against providing lethal weapons to countries engaged in active war, according to the BBC. The broadcaster reports that South Korea announced a $100 million assistance package for Ukraine in July, expanding earlier non-lethal aid. The prisoner dispute has added a diplomatic complication to that relationship, but the supplied accounts do not establish a change to the aid policy.
North Korean troops fighting alongside Russia form the wider context for the transfer. CNA reports that South Korea’s intelligence agency estimated last year that about 2,000 North Korean troops had been killed in the war, while a more recent assessment put the number killed or wounded at about 6,000. Those are agency estimates reported by CNA, rather than a count established by the prisoner transfer.
A separate fuel-shipment controversy has also entered the discussion between Seoul and Kyiv. CNA reports allegations that more than 176,000 tonnes of fuel, mostly diesel, was shipped from South Korea to Russia in July and August. Euronews attributes the underlying shipment report to The Guardian and says South Korea’s foreign ministry declined to discuss specific shipments while reaffirming its export-control policy. The shipment allegation is separate from the disputed prisoner disclosure and is not established by the recall announcement.
Sources and context
- South Korea recalls Ukraine ambassador over prisoner-of-war rowBBC News
- South Korea says to recall ambassador from UkraineCNA
- South Korea recalls ambassador to Ukraine in North Korean prisoner rowEuronews
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