Ukraine's apology over NK POWs falls short of Korea's expectation: foreign minister

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said Tuesday that Ukraine sent an apology over its disclosure of the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea but the message fell short of Seoul’s expectations.

He said the government is considering further diplomatic actions.

Cho made the remarks during a parliamentary audit of the foreign ministry amid a dispute over Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s disclosure of the transfer, which Seoul said the two sides had agreed to keep confidential.

“I have been exchanging messages with the Ukrainian foreign minister, who is very troubled by the situation, and I received a message that included words of apology,” Cho told lawmakers.

“But it was somewhat different from the level we had expected, so we intend to take firm measures,” he said.

Asked whether Seoul could recall its ambassador to Ukraine, Cho said the government was considering that option.

When questioned about the reasons for Zelenskyy’s disclosure, Cho said that in his personal opinion, it seemed the Ukrainian president wanted to show U.N. members that Ukraine took the action to demonstrate its status as a free and democratic country.

The dispute erupted after Zelenskyy publicly revealed in a United Nations speech on Sept. 23 that two North Korean soldiers captured while fighting for Russia in Ukraine had been transferred to South Korea. Seoul maintains that the two sides had agreed to keep the move confidential, citing concerns over the safety of the soldiers and their families in North Korea.

Cho said Ukraine had initially requested confidentiality and that Seoul possesses documents or meeting records showing that such an agreement existed.

He denied that Seoul had promised weapons or other support to Kyiv in return for the transfer.

“Not at all,” Cho said when asked whether any such promise had been made. He said he had raised the issue with his Ukrainian counterpart at Group of Seven foreign ministers’ meetings in March, urging Kyiv to allow the soldiers to come to South Korea in accordance with international law and the Geneva Conventions.

The audit also focused on Seoul’s response to North Korean land mines planted south of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) in the Demilitarized Zone.

Cho said the foreign ministry continues to consider imposing unilateral sanctions targeting North Korea, as well as sending a letter to the president of the U.N. Security Council to call for U.N.-level action. The government will discuss possible responses through the National Security Council, he added.

The South Korean military concluded Monday that North Korean troops had planted the mines that exploded Sept. 21 and seriously injured South Korean soldiers. The U.N. Command (UNC) determined that placing the mines violated the 1953 Korean Armistice Agreement.

Cho said holding North Korea accountable and preventing an unnecessary escalation of tensions should go hand in hand. He described the two objectives as “two sides of the same coin,” saying the government would continue efforts on both fronts.

Cho also backed the need for the two Koreas and the UNC to jointly manage MDL markers, saying Seoul has been discussing the issue with the command but Pyongyang has not responded to the proposal.