South Korea Recalls Ambassador From Ukraine Amid Diplomatic Rift Over North Korean POWs

In brief: South Korea is recalling its ambassador from Ukraine amid a diplomatic dispute over Kyiv’s disclosure of two North Korean prisoners of war transferred to Seoul. The move follows weeks of tensions over the transfer and comes as Seoul faces scrutiny over fuel shipments to Russia.

South Korea will recall its ambassador to Ukraine amid a diplomatic dispute over Kyiv’s disclosure of the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to Seoul, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported on Thursday, Oct. 8.

The recall comes after weeks of escalating tensions between the two countries, with Seoul accusing Kyiv of violating a confidentiality agreement and saying Ukraine’s subsequent apology did not go far enough.

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The dispute began on Sept. 23, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced during his address to the UN General Assembly that Ukraine had transferred two captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea.

The two soldiers were captured by Ukrainian forces in Russia’s Kursk region in January 2025 while fighting alongside Russian troops. One was carrying Russian military identification documents, while the other had no identification.

Zelensky said the soldiers had not been easy to capture alive, adding that one had attempted suicide to avoid being taken prisoner. Reports later indicated that the two initially rejected an offer to move to South Korea but changed their minds later in 2025.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung criticized Zelensky after the announcement , saying the public disclosure could create unspecified problems.

Seoul said the two governments had agreed to keep the transfer confidential because of security concerns surrounding the soldiers and their relatives in North Korea.

Ukraine disputed Seoul’s characterization of the agreement.

Zelensky’s office said South Korea had been informed in advance that the Ukrainian president intended to mention the transfer in his UN speech. Kyiv also argued that Zelensky had not disclosed identifying information about the soldiers or sensitive operational details.

South Korea nevertheless demanded an official explanation and apology , accusing Kyiv of violating the confidentiality arrangement.

The issue became increasingly contentious after Kyiv initially rejected Seoul’s characterization of the agreement.

On Oct. 2, Lee warned that South Korea would take “further measures” if Ukraine continued to refuse to acknowledge the agreement and publicly apologize. Seoul had already summoned Ukraine’s ambassador over the dispute.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha described the dispute as a “diplomatic misunderstanding” and said Kyiv wanted to resolve it quickly, stressing that South Korea remained an important partner.

By Oct. 6, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said Sybiha had apologized in messages exchanged between the two sides.

But Cho said the apology fell short of Seoul’s expectations.

South Korea was then considering several possible responses, including recalling its ambassador to Ukraine , Park Hee-chang.

Cho said confidentiality had been agreed upon from the outset and was intended to protect the soldiers and their relatives, who remain in North Korea.

He also offered his personal interpretation that Zelensky may have wanted to demonstrate at the UN that Ukraine had acted appropriately as a liberal democracy.

The diplomatic dispute comes as Seoul faces separate questions over South Korean fuel shipments to Russia.

A Guardian investigation found that more than 176,000 metric tons of fuel, mostly diesel, were loaded at South Korean ports in July and August and transported to Russia’s Far East.

Seven tankers made 14 voyages , with three of the vessels reportedly under UK or EU sanctions. One sanctioned tanker received fuel through a ship-to-ship transfer in South Korean waters, potentially making the origin of the cargo harder to trace.

The shipments came as Russia faced growing fuel shortages following Ukrainian strikes on its oil-refining infrastructure.

According to the International Energy Agency, Russian refinery throughput fell in June to its lowest level in more than two decades, while diesel production was nearly 30% below the level recorded a year earlier.

Data analyzed by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air showed Russia’s seaborne imports of oil products surged in August.

The reported increase in shipments from South Korea began in July, around the same time Lee pledged $100 million for Ukraine’s reconstruction at a NATO summit in Turkey.

South Korea has rejected suggestions that the reported shipments violated its export controls.

The South Korean Foreign Ministry said on Oct. 8 that refined petroleum products, including commercial diesel and aviation fuel cited in The Guardian report, were not subject to South Korea’s export controls on Russia.

It also said it had not established whether the fuel was actually of South Korean origin and was conducting further checks into the vessels’ routes.

The ministry said South Korea’s overall exports to Russia had fallen by more than half since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

An adviser to Zelensky criticized the reported shipments as being in “sharp contrast” with Seoul’s sanctions policy. South Korea called those remarks “factually incorrect” and “inappropriate.”

The two disputes come against the backdrop of deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea.

Pyongyang has deployed troops to support Russia’s war against Ukraine and has supplied Moscow with ammunition and other military assistance in exchange for economic and military benefits.

The two North Korean soldiers captured in Kursk were among the first known North Korean troops taken alive by Ukrainian forces.

South Korea, meanwhile, has provided Ukraine with financial and humanitarian assistance but has maintained a policy against directly supplying lethal weapons to countries involved in active conflicts.

Seoul has also emerged as a major global arms exporter, including through multibillion-dollar weapons deals with European countries since Russia’s full-scale invasion.

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