South Korea and Ukraine Negotiate the Fate of North Korean POWs

South Korea is in talks with Ukraine about North Korean prisoners of war, indicating readiness to accept them as citizens if they express a desire to defect. There are significant concerns regarding the safety of these soldiers, given potential punishment by North Korea. The ongoing war has seen nearly 11,000 North Korean troops deployed to aid Russia, marking their first foreign military involvement.

South Korea has initiated discussions with Ukraine regarding the future of North Korean soldiers who have been captured during the ongoing conflict. The South Korean government has stated that they are willing to accept these prisoners, provided they express a desire to defect to South Korea. Foreign Minister Cho Tae Yul informed Ukrainian counterpart Andrii Sybiha that such prisoners would be treated as South Korean citizens if they indicate their willingness to relocate.

Ukraine has estimated that approximately 11,000 North Korean soldiers have been deployed to support Russia’s military efforts, marking North Korea’s first involvement in an external conflict. President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukrainian forces had either killed or injured around 4,000 North Korean troops during significant military engagements, particularly in the Kursk region, which Ukrainian forces briefly entered during a counteroffensive last year.

Despite these developments, both the Russian and North Korean governments have refuted claims regarding the active participation of North Korean troops in Ukraine’s war efforts, despite having formed a mutual defense agreement in November. President Zelensky noted the capture of two wounded North Korean soldiers earlier in January and released a video where one soldier expressed a clear intention to remain in Ukraine.

One captured soldier reportedly conveyed to South Korea’s Chosun newspaper his willingness to defect and inquired about the possibility of receiving asylum. The discussions between the foreign ministers arose from heightened concerns regarding the treatment and safety of North Korean soldiers who have surrendered during military conflicts in Ukraine.

Concerns about the fate of these North Korean soldiers have been exacerbated by warnings from defectors, such as Pak Yusung, who stated, “If the soldiers are captured and tell information to the enemy, their families will be punished, go to a political prison camp, or worse, they will be executed in front of the people.”

The discussions between South Korea and Ukraine underscore the complexities associated with North Korean soldiers captured in Ukraine, highlighting South Korea’s readiness to accept defectors while raising critical considerations about their safety and potential repercussions from the North Korean regime. Both the humanitarian aspects and geopolitical implications of these discussions need careful consideration to address the fates of these individuals.

Original Source: www.independent.co.uk