Zelensky Announces at UN Podium That Two North Korean Soldiers Captured by Ukraine Have Been Handed Over to South Korea

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking at the UN session in New York, announced that Kyiv had handed over to the Republic of Korea two military personnel of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) who had been taken prisoner by Ukrainian defenders. According to the head of state, capturing the North Korean fighters alive proved to be an extremely difficult task, and the very fact of their presence on the front line confirms the scale of North Korea's involvement in the fighting on Russia's side.

"This Is How People Are Raised in the North"

Zelensky dwelled in detail on the psychology of the captured soldiers. According to him, one of them, realizing he had been taken prisoner, attempted to take his own life and was in a state of shock that "fate had not let him die." "This is how people are raised in the North. That is the reality," the president emphasized. He added that, in his assessment, North Korean military personnel are stripped of the right to choose and are "taught in their minds that they must die" under any circumstances. These remarks became, perhaps, the most emotional part of the speech and sparked wide resonance in international media.

Context: The North Korean Footprint in the War

Zelensky's statement fits into a broader context that Western outlets had previously documented. Bloomberg, for instance, reported that around 25,000 North Korean citizens may be engaged in assembling drones on Russian territory, including at the "Alabuga" industrial park. According to the outlet, DPRK authorities register such workers as students to circumvent international sanctions. Meanwhile, DPRK leader Kim Jong Un, in a letter to Russian leadership, pledged to expand and deepen cooperation between the two countries. Thus, the handover of the prisoners becomes public confirmation that the North Korean footprint in the conflict goes beyond rhetorical accusations.

Contradictory Data

When cross-referencing sources, discrepancies in the details emerge. Ukrainian outlets RBC-Ukraine and Censor.net cite Zelensky's statement as made from the podium of the UN General Assembly, whereas a number of international publications (notably RFI) describe his speech in the context of a UN Security Council session. Moreover, none of the sources discloses the exact date of the prisoners' handover, the specific area where they were captured, or provides any confirmation from the Republic of Korea or the DPRK. Thus, the fact of the president's statement is confirmed, but the circumstances and chronology of the handover remain partially unverified.

Significance for Diplomacy

The handover of the captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea is a step that goes beyond a military operation and touches the diplomatic plane. For Seoul, it is an opportunity to obtain living witnesses to the conditions under which their compatriots ended up in a foreign war; for Kyiv, it is a tool for publicly demonstrating that Russia is using foreign mercenaries and armed formations of other states. In a situation where Zelensky simultaneously declares that "Russia can only be forced to peace," such episodes become part of an information and diplomatic strategy aimed at drawing the attention of international platforms to the role of third countries in the conflict.