Ukraine sent two captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea, Zelenskyy says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced at the UN General Assembly that Ukraine has transferred two captured North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea. The soldiers, captured in Russia's Kursk region, had expressed a desire to defect rather than face repatriation to North Korea or Russia.
Why it matters
It underscores the expanding international dimensions of the Russia-Ukraine war, involving North Korean troop deployments and complex humanitarian and geopolitical defection issues.
Ukraine has transferred two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Wednesday (September 23, 2026) in an address to the United Nations General Assembly.
“Recently, we sent two North Korean prisoners of war to the Republic of Korea,” said Mr. Zelenskyy in his speech.
“These guys are not easy to capture alive. One of them, when he realized he was going to be taken prisoner, tried to kill himself. And he was shocked that fate did not let him die.”
Mr. Zelenskyy did not provide more details about the return. Ukraine captured the two North Koreans in Russia’s Kursk region in January last year. They were the first North Korean soldiers to be apprehended alive since the country joined the Russia-Ukraine war in 2024.
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