Kyiv-Seoul strategic partnership
Ukraine and South Korea deepen security, economic ties, discuss North Korean POWs
Key Points
Sibiga updated Cho Hyun on Ukraine's defense-industrial sector progress, highlighting recent achievements as part of Kyiv’s push to bolster security cooperation with Seoul.
The POWs discussed were North Korean soldiers captured in Russia’s Kursk region in January 2025, with reports noting they were injured and reportedly unaware they were being sent to fight in the war.
South Korea maintains that North Korean soldiers are constitutionally regarded as South Korean nationals and would accept any POWs wishing to relocate to South Korea, with transfers proceeding under domestic laws and procedures.
Rights groups have warned about the potential risks and humanitarian concerns if North Korean POWs were forcibly returned to North Korea, underscoring the uncertainty around safety and due process.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha arrived in Seoul on June 29, 2026 — the first visit by a Ukrainian FM in 11 years — and held talks with South Korean counterpart Cho Hyun on deepening security ties and the fate of two captured North Korean soldiers. The Korea Herald reported the meetings covered defense cooperation, postwar reconstruction, and what to do with the POWs, who have expressed a desire to move to South Korea.
The talks came as North Korean troop casualties in Ukraine mounted. South Korean intelligence estimates roughly 6,000 DPRK soldiers were killed or wounded by early 2026, according to The Korea Times. Both sides reaffirmed that North Korea will never be recognized as a nuclear state.
North Korean Soldiers Captured Fighting in Russia's Kursk Region
The two POWs at the center of the diplomatic talks were captured by Ukrainian Special Operations Forces in January 2025, in Russia's Kursk region. Kyiv Independent reported that one soldier, shown in an interrogation video released by President Zelenskyy, said he believed he was being sent for "military training" — not combat. North Korea deployed an estimated 14,000–15,000 troops to Kursk in late 2024, according to the Institute for the Study of War.
Both soldiers were injured when captured. Rights groups say they were reportedly unaware they were heading into active war. Human Rights Watch has warned that any forced return to North Korea could expose the soldiers — and their families — to severe punishment or execution. UN High Commissioner Volker Türk stated in May 2026 that international law prohibits sending the men back to a country where they face torture.
Seoul Says POWs Are Legally South Korean Citizens
South Korea's constitution treats all people on the Korean Peninsula as South Korean nationals. That gives Seoul a legal basis to accept the two soldiers as "repatriates" rather than foreign detainees. Hankyoreh reported that South Korean FM Cho Hyun confirmed his country would accept any POWs who wish to come south, with transfers proceeding under domestic laws and procedures.
South Korean Foreign Ministry spokesperson Park Il confirmed the POWs still want to relocate to South Korea, according to Yonhap. Analysts say a successful transfer could have a chilling effect on future DPRK deployments. If soldiers risk mass surrender, Pyongyang may think twice before sending more troops to Russia.
Ukraine Offers 'Battle-Tested' Drones in Exchange for Korean Industry
The Seoul talks were not only about the POWs. Sybiha briefed Cho Hyun on Ukraine's defense-industrial progress and pushed for expanded cooperation. Interfax-Ukraine quoted Sybiha saying, "True peace is never maintained by empty pieces of paper... but by strength of real deterrence." He also visited the Demilitarized Zone, drawing a direct line between Korea's historic divide and Ukraine's front lines.
Security analysts say Ukraine is proposing a hard trade: combat-proven drone technology and electronic warfare tactics in exchange for South Korea's manufacturing capacity. Sybiha also attended a roundtable with the Korea Overseas Infrastructure and Urban Development Corporation on June 29, according to Ukrinform, signaling Seoul's interest in Ukraine's postwar rebuilding contracts.
Russia-North Korea Axis Pushes Seoul Closer to Kyiv
The broader driver behind the talks is the 2024 mutual defense treaty between Russia and North Korea. Kim Jong Un declared his country's nuclear status "irreversible" in March 2026, according to africaninsider.com. North Korea has fired at least seven missiles in 2026 alone. Both Ukraine and South Korea now face the same two adversaries, giving them strong reasons to align.
mezha.net reported that both ministers stressed the need for sustained high-level dialogue and called on Korean businesses to invest in Ukraine's reconstruction. South Korea is the world's 11th largest economy and has pledged "meaningful contributions" in energy and industrial plants. The last Ukrainian FM visit to Seoul was in 2015 — the speed of this rapprochement shows how much the war has reshaped Asian security politics.
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