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South Korea is withdrawing some diplomatic staff from Ukraine amid a row over two North Korean war prisoners sent to Seoul and ongoing airstrike threats across the country, Seoul’s foreign ministry announced Tuesday.
Kyiv has yet to take "positive steps" to settle the row over its unilateral disclosure of the POW transfer, and the airstrike threats make it hard to guarantee diplomats’ safety, ministry spokesperson Park Doo-soon told a regular briefing.
"The government has decided to withdraw some diplomatic staff in consideration of the difficulty in ensuring safety due to the persistent threat of airstrikes across Ukraine, while there have been no forward-looking measures from the U.S. side even after the recall of the ambassador," he added.
Park said Seoul will keep necessary diplomatic communications open with Ukraine through its charge d’affaires, and all consular staff will stay to protect South Korean nationals.
In response to a question regarding whether other measures are being considered, he said, "We hope that the right side will take forward-looking measures with sincerity regarding the matters we have been requesting, and that we will then move to a stage of discussion for the development of bilateral relations."
Seoul recalled its ambassador, Park Ki-chang, earlier this month, saying it regretted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s public disclosure of the transfer.
Captured in January 2025 while fighting for Russia in the Kursk region, the two soldiers arrived in South Korea in mid-September, officials said.
Seoul wants an official explanation and apology from Ukraine, along with a statement from Zelenskyy’s office denying any deal to keep the matter confidential.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy disclosed the handover of the two soldiers in a U.N. General Assembly speech on Sept. 23. Seoul says both governments had agreed to keep the matter secret to protect the men and their relatives in North Korea, and that Kyiv initially requested confidentiality.
Ukraine denies any such agreement existed.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said, "The Ukrainian side demanded confidentiality and agreed to it, but unilaterally disclosed it."
On Oct. 2, he warned of additional measures unless Kyiv publicly apologizes and acknowledges the facts.
The government then recalled Ambassador Park Ki-chang on Oct. 8.
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said a message from his counterpart, Andrii Sybiha, included an apology but fell short of the level Seoul expected.
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi said the message only expressed regret over the escalation.
Sybiha has called the dispute a "diplomatic misunderstanding."
The Guardian reported in early October that more than 176,000 tons of fuel, mostly diesel, went from South Korea to Russia in July and August.
Ukraine’s sanctions chief, Vladyslav Vlasiuk, said South Korea supplied more than 30% of Russia’s fuel imports in August.
South Korea's Foreign Ministry says the refined products cited are not subject to its export controls on Russia. Seoul has provided only humanitarian and non-lethal aid to Ukraine, citing a domestic ban on lethal weapons.
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