The presidential administration of South Korea has stated that Ukraine violated a non-disclosure agreement regarding the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to Seoul, expressing "strong regret" over the matter.
"The presidential administration expresses its strong regret over Ukraine's unilateral disclosure of information (regarding the transfer) and its subsequent false claim that no non-disclosure agreement existed," South Korean newspaper The Korea Herald reports.
The statement was made by Senior Presidential Secretary for Public Relations Sung Ghi-hun. According to him, Seoul is considering taking additional measures on this issue if necessary.
Last week, during his speech at the United Nations General Assembly, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine had transferred two North Korean servicemen captured last year to South Korea.
Following this, the South Korean side stated that the transfer was meant to be confidential for the safety of the prisoners of war and their families. According to Seoul, Ukraine had agreed not to disclose information about the transfer.
Subsequently, Ukrainian media, citing a source in the Office of the President, reported that the Ukrainian side denies the existence of a confidentiality agreement with Seoul.
The South Korean administration stated that such a denial "seriously undermines" mutual trust and damages friendly relations between the countries.
According to Sung, the Ukrainian government itself insisted on the confidentiality of the transfer, fearing internal criticism over losing the opportunity to exchange North Korean POWs for Ukrainian POWs. Seoul, he said, agreed to confidentiality considering the safety of the prisoners and their families, as well as diplomatic and security issues.
At the same time, a representative of the South Korean presidential administration stated that Volodymyr Zelenskyy made the information about the transfer public without prior explanation or consultation, despite what Seoul claims was a mutual agreement.
