Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that Ukraine transferred two captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea. The soldiers were reportedly fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine.

Zelenskyy explained that he had initially offered to hand the prisoners directly to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The proposed condition was that Pyongyang facilitate the release of Ukrainian citizens held captive in Russia.

This unusual case underscores the complex, multinational nature of the war in Ukraine and Kyiv’s efforts to leverage any available channel for prisoner exchanges.