Zelensky revealed at the UN General Assembly that two North Korean prisoners of war had been sent to South Korea, triggering a political row

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shake hands ahead of their summit at a hotel in Ankara, Turkey, on Sept. 8 (local time). [Yonhap]
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shake hands ahead of their summit at a hotel in Ankara, Turkey, on Sept. 8 (local time). [Yonhap]

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's surprise disclosure that two North Korean prisoners of war had been transferred to South Korea has sparked a political dispute within Ukraine itself.

The South Korean government has said Ukraine violated a prior agreement to keep the transfer confidential by announcing it without warning, and the episode has set off a public war of words inside Ukraine over whether any such agreement existed.

According to Ukrainian outlets Ukrainska Pravda and Interfax-Ukraine, Oksana Torop, a media adviser to Ukrainian Ambassador to the United Kingdom Valerii Zaluzhnyi, said on Facebook on Friday (local time) that Zelensky's public announcement of the prisoner transfer was a "show."

"The problem is that there was a confidential agreement between the two countries," Torop said. "A show, inflated publicity, intense effect for an intense scene. Here we go again."

The public criticism came from a figure in the camp of Zaluzhnyi, widely regarded as Zelensky's chief political rival.

Zelensky adviser Dmytro Lytvyn responded directly in the comments section of the post, rebuffing the claim.

"There was no such (confidential) agreement. That is not true," Lytvyn said, adding that "it would also be wrong to conceal where certain prisoners of war are being sent."

Torop fired back, writing that "as far as I know, such an agreement did exist, and the prisoner issue was part of broader cooperation negotiations with South Korea." Lytvyn replied again, insisting: "There was no agreement to stay silent" — and the exchange continued in the comments.

Earlier, Zelensky told the UN General Assembly on Wednesday that Ukraine had recently transferred two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea, catching many observers off guard.

Regarding the disclosure, the Ukrainian presidential office told Yonhap in response to a query about the decision to send the North Korean soldiers to South Korea that it was "a fairly sensitive matter," but said the decision had been made through "direct dialogue with South Korea."

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday that "the repatriation of North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea is an extremely sensitive issue that significantly affects diplomacy, security and the situation on the Korean Peninsula," adding that keeping it confidential "was the right call in every respect, given the many problems that public disclosure would create, and that is what was agreed."

Lee went on to say that Ukraine had "broken the confidentiality agreement by making it public," and said he was "deeply disappointed, whatever the circumstances may have been."


mokiya@heraldcorp.com