Seoul:South Korean President Lee Jae Myung announced that Seoul might implement "additional measures" if Ukraine does not acknowledge a confidentiality agreement regarding the transfer of two North Korean soldiers to South Korea and fails to apologize for claiming no such agreement existed.

According to Anadolu Agency, tensions between South Korea and Ukraine rose after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed at the UN General Assembly that two North Korean soldiers, captured while fighting for Russia, were transferred to South Korea. These soldiers were captured in Russia's Kursk region in early 2025.

The South Korean Foreign Ministry summoned the Ukrainian ambassador to express strong concerns over Ukraine's denial of the agreement and demanded an apology. South Korea has accused Ukraine of breaching the confidentiality agreement designed to protect the soldiers, stating that Kyiv originally requested secrecy.

President Lee criticized Ukraine for not acknowledging the agreement, instead suggesting that Kyiv mentioned a potential inter-Korean military conflict. He accused Ukraine of trying to incite "war on the Korean Peninsula" and expressed "serious regret." A senior South Korean government official confirmed that both countries had agreed to a confidentiality clause and stated that their foreign ministers are discussing how Ukraine should respond to South Korea's apology demand.