South Korean President Lee Jae-myung threatens Ukraine: Punitive measures will be taken if Ukraine does not apologize for leaking prisoner transfer secrets

(Deutsche Welle Chinese website) South Korean President Lee Jae-myung threatened on Friday (October 2) that South Korea will take unspecified punitive measures if Ukraine refuses to apologize for disclosing the secret transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea.

Seoul and Kyiv are locked in a diplomatic spat. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky disclosed the transfer in a speech to the United Nations last week, prompting a strong protest from Seoul, which accused Ukraine of violating a confidentiality agreement on the matter, while Kyiv denied that such an agreement had been reached.

The arrival of the two North Korean soldiers last month could also cause problems for the South Korean government, which hopes to improve relations with Pyongyang. But despite the escalating rhetoric, many experts believe Seoul is unlikely to take drastic action - maintaining good relations with Ukraine is in South Korea's national interest and also helps partnerships with other Western countries.

The two North Korean soldiers were captured by the Ukrainian army early last year when they went to Russia with thousands of North Korean soldiers to support the war against Ukraine. North Korea in exchange for economic and military aid from Russia.

South Korea's efforts to improve relations have suffered setbacks

The transfer of North Korean prisoners of war could complicate Seoul's efforts to promote dialogue with Pyongyang, which has reacted violently to the defection of its citizens and accused South Korea of kidnapping.

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said that his government has been coordinating the resumption of talks between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and US President Trump, hoping to promote dialogue between South Korea and North Korea and enhance peace on the peninsula.

Trump has repeatedly expressed his willingness to meet his "friend" Kim Jong-un again, saying that he is "probably the only person in the world who is liked by Kim Jong-un." However, Kim Jong-un has not responded to his warm invitation so far.

A recent landmine explosion on the border between North and South Korea injured three South Korean soldiers, potentially derailing South Korea's reconciliation efforts. South Korea determined that the explosion was caused by landmines laid by North Korea and demanded that North Korea apologize and stop its border fortification projects. On Friday, Kim Jong Un's sister and senior official Kim Yo Jong called South Korea's request "pathetic in the extreme" and said North Korea intended to permanently sever ties with South Korea.

Ukraine calls dispute "a diplomatic misunderstanding"

Lee Jae-myung posted on social platform X on Wednesday, accusing Ukraine of not acknowledging his previous statement about the existence of a confidentiality agreement, making him look like a "liar."

He said that if Ukraine refuses to acknowledge the existence of the confidentiality agreement and publicly apologize, the South Korean government will take "further measures." He wrote that this was a matter of national dignity and therefore could not be ignored.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Serbiga called the dispute "a diplomatic misunderstanding" on Thursday. He told reporters that he was communicating with the South Korean Foreign Minister every day and said he very much hoped that the situation could be resolved in the short term.

South Korean officials believe that Zelenskiy disclosed this matter in the hope of arousing public support in South Korea and prompting South Korea to provide Ukraine with much-needed missile defense and other weapons systems.

Lee Jae-myung's office previously stated that the confidentiality agreement was reached because Kiev was worried that giving up the opportunity to use these North Korean soldiers for future prisoner exchanges with Russia would lead to domestic criticism; South Korea was concerned about the safety of these soldiers and their families, as well as other unspecified diplomatic and security issues.

Since 2022, South Korea has provided $445 million in humanitarian assistance to Ukraine. In July this year, Lee Jae-ming promised to provide another US$100 million in aid when he met with Zelensky during the NATO summit in Türkiye.

South Korea's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday it would continue to explore ways to assist Ukraine on humanitarian and reconstruction fronts. South Korea is an increasingly important arms exporter but has not supplied weapons to Ukraine in line with its policy of not supplying weapons to countries at war.