President Lee Jae-myung and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky [Yonhap]
President Lee Jae-myung and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky [Yonhap]

South Korea's embassy in Ukraine said Sunday (local time) that both Seoul and Kyiv had shared an understanding during negotiations over the repatriation of North Korean prisoners of war that the matter should be kept from the public for as long as possible.

Yoon Ji-wan, the embassy's acting ambassador, made the remarks at a national audit by the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee held at the South Korean Embassy in Warsaw. "There was no discussion at all about when to make it public, and many were of the view that it would be best to keep it undisclosed for as long as possible," Yoon said.

Yoon said the embassy had not been informed in advance that Zelensky would publicly announce the repatriation of North Korean POWs to South Korea during his address to the UN General Assembly on Sept. 23.

He added that Ukraine has yet to offer a specific explanation for why it chose to make the announcement public.

Regarding Zelensky's disclosure, Yoon said there has been strong criticism even within Ukraine — both over the lack of internal consultation and over the impromptu breaking of the confidentiality agreement. "Ukraine is no longer pushing back," he said. "I understand they are in a position where they cannot deny that a confidentiality agreement existed."

On the Ukrainian government's response, he said it appeared to be "taking considerable time to coordinate and react to the president's remarks."

Dmytro Lytvyn, an aide to Zelensky, denied the existence of any such agreement three days after the disclosure, saying "there was no such (confidentiality) agreement."

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha also effectively rejected South Korea's demand for an apology on Monday, saying he considered the matter "closed."

Regarding the broader dispute, Yoon said both sides viewed the prisoner repatriation as "an enormously significant achievement" and that there was a shared understanding that "the bilateral relationship must be built on stability and trust, and that this issue needs to be resolved wisely."

Seoul maintains apology demand

In an interview with Ukrainian outlet RBC Ukraine on Monday, Foreign Minister Sybiha said Ukraine had transferred two North Korean POWs to South Korea as a gesture of goodwill and had fulfilled all its obligations, declaring the matter "closed."

Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Park Du-soon said at a regular briefing Tuesday that the government "expects all outstanding issues between the two countries to be resolved smoothly" and that Seoul "will continue consultations with the Ukrainian side toward that end and is in ongoing communication."

A Foreign Ministry official also said that while the precise meaning and context of Sybiha's "closed" remark was unclear, "it is certain that we continue to communicate in seeking a smooth resolution between the two sides." When asked whether the government's demands for an apology and measures to prevent a recurrence remained in effect, the official said yes.

The exchange suggested that diplomatic communication between the two countries continues, but that differences over the apology and explanation remain unresolved.

Earlier, Cheong Wa Dae had demanded an official explanation and apology from Ukraine after Kyiv unilaterally disclosed the North Korean prisoners' transfer to South Korea and put forward the false claim that no confidentiality agreement had existed.

Ukraine stood firm in its position that the dispute stemmed from differing interpretations of the confidentiality agreement. The government decided to recall Ambassador Park Ki-chang from Kyiv on Oct. 8 as a diplomatic protest.

The government is maintaining its demand for an apology while leaving room for flexibility on the specific form of the apology and the timing of the ambassador's return, as it continues to pursue a diplomatic resolution.


yul@heraldcorp.com