Timeline of NK POW row between Seoul, Kyiv

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy disclosed the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea in New York on Sept. 23. Seoul said Kyiv had breached a confidentiality agreement, while Ukraine denied that such an agreement existed. South Korea demanded an apology, recalled its ambassador to Ukraine on Oct. 8, and said Tuesday it was continuing efforts to resolve the dispute.

President Lee Jae Myung said the confidentiality arrangement concerned diplomacy, national security and the situation on the Korean Peninsula.

South Korea summoned Ukraine’s acting ambassador Andrii Vieshkin and requested an official clarification and apology.

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said he received an informal apology from Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha during a National Assembly audit on Oct. 6.

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Georgiy Tykhyi said the dispute resulted from differing interpretations of the confidentiality arrangements.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Kyiv considered the matter closed, according to RBC-Ukraine.

Published Oct 14, 2026 3:44 pm KST

Updated Oct 14, 2026 4:47 pm KST

North Korean soldiers, captured by Ukrainian forces, receive medical treatment at an undisclosed location in Kyiv in these photos released by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in January 2025. Korea Times file

The dispute between Seoul and Kyiv over the disclosed transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war (POW) to South Korea began with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's announcement of the move to world leaders on Sept. 23.

"Recently, we sent two North Korean prisoners of war to the Republic of Korea," he said during his U.N. General Assembly speech in New York, referring to the official name of South Korea.

President Lee Jae Myung wrote on social media the following day: "The Ukrainian side's decision to disclose the information in violation of a confidentiality agreement is deeply regrettable." He said the two sides had agreed to keep the transfer a secret because it is a "highly sensitive matter with significant implications for diplomacy, national security and the situation on the Korean Peninsula.

Yet Dmytro Lytvyn, communications adviser to Zelenskyy, in a statement on Facebook denied any such agreement existed.

In a Sept. 27 statement, Sung Ki-hong, South Korea's senior presidential secretary for public communication, criticized the Ukrainian government's handling of the issue and for publicly disclosing the transfer without sufficient prior notice or detailed consultation with Seoul despite Kyiv's initial request for confidentiality.

In protest, Seoul's foreign ministry called in Andrii Vieshkin, acting ambassador of Ukraine to Korea, the next day, and expressed strong concern over Ukraine's denial of the confidentiality agreement. South Korea also demanded that Ukraine issue an official clarification and apology.

Saying Kyiv had “made the leader of another country look like a liar” by denying the existence of a confidentiality agreement, Lee again warned through social media on Oct. 2 that South Korea would consider further measures if Ukraine continued refusing to acknowledge the facts and issue an apology.

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, in regular contact with his Ukrainian counterpart, Andrii Sybiha, said that he received an informal apology from him. "But it felt short of what Seoul expected," Cho said during a National Assembly audit of the ministry on Oct. 6.

Despite foreign minister's words, as Georgiy Tykhyi, a spokesman for Ukraine's foreign ministry, said the dispute arose due to differing interpretations of the confidentiality arrangements between the two countries, the South Korean government decided to recall Park Ki-chang, its ambassador to Ukraine, on Oct. 8. Park returned to Korea on Saturday.

Still, Ukraine maintained its stance, with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Sybiha saying Kyiv considers the "matter closed," according to a report by RBC-Ukraine on Monday.

South Korea's foreign ministry said Tuesday it is continuing efforts to resolve the diplomatic dispute while maintaining its demand for an apology from Ukraine.

9月23日，乌克兰总统泽连斯基在纽约宣布将两名朝鲜战俘移交给韩国。首尔方面称基辅违反了保密协议，而乌克兰则否认存在此类协议。韩国要求乌克兰道歉，并于10月8日召回了驻乌克兰大使。韩国周二表示，将继续努力解决争端。

李在明总统表示，保密安排涉及外交、国家安全和朝鲜半岛局势。

韩国召见了乌克兰代理大使安德烈·维什金，要求乌克兰方面做出正式澄清并道歉。

韩国外交部长赵显表示，10月6日，在国会听证会上，他收到了乌克兰外交部长安德烈·西比哈的非正式道歉。

乌克兰外交部发言人格奥尔基·蒂赫伊表示，这场争端源于对保密协议的不同解读。

据 RBC-Ukraine 报道，乌克兰外交部长安德烈·西比哈表示，基辅方面认为此事已经结束。

发布于2026年10月14日下午3:44（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年10月14日下午4:47（韩国标准时间）

2025年1月，乌克兰总统泽连斯基公布了这些照片，照片显示被乌克兰军队俘虏的朝鲜士兵在基辅一处秘密地点接受治疗。（《韩国时报》资料照片）

首尔和基辅之间关于向韩国转移两名朝鲜战俘的争端始于乌克兰总统泽连斯基于 9 月 23 日向世界各国领导人宣布这一举动。

“最近，我们向大韩民国（韩国的正式名称）送去了两名朝鲜战俘，”他在纽约联合国大会上发表讲话时说道。

李在明总统第二天在社交媒体上发文称：“乌克兰方面违反保密协议泄露信息，令人深感遗憾。” 他表示，双方同意对此次移交保密，因为这是“高度敏感的问题，对外交、国家安全和朝鲜半岛局势具有重大影响”。

然而，泽连斯基的通讯顾问德米特罗·利特温在Facebook上发表声明，否认存在任何此类协议。

9月27日，韩国总统府公共关系高级秘书成基洪发表声明，批评乌克兰政府处理此事的方式，并指责乌克兰政府在未事先充分通知或与首尔进行详细磋商的情况下，无视基辅最初要求保密的要求，公开披露了此次移交事件。

为表示抗议，首尔外交部于次日召见了乌克兰驻韩国代理大使安德烈·维什金，并对乌克兰否认保密协议表示强烈关切。韩国还要求乌克兰发表正式澄清声明并道歉。

李在10月2日通过社交媒体再次警告说，基辅否认保密协议的存在“让另一个国家的领导人看起来像个骗子”，并表示如果乌克兰继续拒绝承认事实并道歉，韩国将考虑采取进一步措施。

韩国外交部长赵显铉与乌克兰外长安德烈·西比哈保持着定期联系。他表示，已收到乌克兰方面的非正式道歉。“但这感觉远未达到首尔的预期，”赵显铉在10月6日韩国国会就外交部问题进行质询时说道。

尽管乌克兰外交部发言人格奥尔基·蒂赫伊表示，尽管外交部长如此表态，但这场争端是由于两国对保密协议的解读不同而引起的，韩国政府还是在10月8日决定召回其驻乌克兰大使朴基昌。朴基昌于周六返回韩国。

尽管如此，乌克兰仍坚持其立场。据 RBC-Ukraine 周一报道，乌克兰外交部长西比哈表示，基辅认为“此事已经结束”。

韩国外交部周二表示，将继续努力解决外交争端，同时坚持要求乌克兰道歉。