Ukraine and South Korea Discuss Fate of Captured North Korean Soldiers (Video)

Ukraine and South Korea have held discussions regarding the potential repatriation of North Korean soldiers captured by Ukrainian forces. The talks were confirmed by South Korea’s Yonhap news agency and involved a phone conversation between South Korean Foreign Minister Sha Tae-yul and Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha. Seoul has expressed its willingness to accept any North Korean prisoners of war (POWs) who wish to relocate to South Korea.

The issue first came to light in January 2025 when reports surfaced of captured North Korean soldiers in Ukraine. The South Korean Constitution recognises the entire Korean Peninsula as its territory, granting all Koreans the status of South Korean citizens. However, no transfers of captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea have taken place yet.

In February, South Korea’s Chosun Ilbo newspaper published interviews with two North Korean POWs captured by Ukrainian forces. The prisoners, identified as Ri, a 26-year-old reconnaissance officer, and Baek, a 21-year-old rifleman, confirmed that they served in North Korea’s military intelligence agency, the Reconnaissance General Bureau. Their unit was initially mistaken for the 11th Storm Corps, a North Korean special operations unit.

The Reconnaissance General Bureau is responsible for North Korea’s covert military operations. It oversees several specialised units, including the 180th, 91st, and 525th units. Some intelligence personnel may have been reassigned under military reforms, which could explain their deployment to the Russian frontlines. The presence of North Korean soldiers in the war suggests increasing desperation from Russia, which has been seeking foreign manpower to compensate for its mounting battlefield losses.