# South Korea recalls Ukraine ambassador over POW row

> Seoul pulls its envoy after President Zelenskyy disclosed the transfer of North Korean prisoners of war, breaching what Seoul says was a confidentiality agreement.
- Title: South Korea recalls Ukraine ambassador over POW row · POLITICO
- Summary: Seoul pulls its envoy after President Zelenskyy disclosed the transfer of North Korean prisoners of war, breaching what Seoul says was a confidentiality…
- Keywords: south korea, ukraine, north korea, prisoners of war, volodymyr zelenskyy, diplomatic dispute, politics, world, South, Korea, recalls, ambassador
- Source: POLITICO — https://politico.eu/article/south-korea-recalls-ambassador-from-ukraine-amid-prisoner-of-war-scandal
- Published: 2026-10-08T13:06:07+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: south korea, ukraine, north korea, prisoners of war, volodymyr zelenskyy, diplomatic dispute, politics, world
## Seoul pulls ambassador over POW disclosure
South Korea recalled its ambassador to Ukraine on Thursday, two weeks after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy publicly revealed the transfer of North Korean prisoners of war to Seoul.
## Seoul accuses Ukraine of breaking confidentiality
On September twenty-fourth, South Korean president Lee Jae-myung accused Ukraine of breaching a confidentiality agreement after Zelenskyy disclosed the transfer of two North Korean soldiers. Lee said the disclosure on such a highly sensitive issue may cause many problems.

> highly sensitive issue
## Ukraine apologises but Seoul wants more
Kyiv initially denied such an agreement existed, then described the situation as a diplomatic misunderstanding. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha issued an apology, but South Korean counterpart Cho Hyun said Tuesday it was insufficient and Seoul intends to take resolute measures.

> Because there is some gap with the level we envisioned, we intend to take resolute measures
## Key takeaway

South Korea recalled its ambassador to Ukraine on Thursday after President Zelenskyy publicly revealed the transfer of North Korean prisoners of war to Seoul, violating a confidentiality agreement Seoul says existed between the two countries.