South Korea recalls Ukraine ambassador over North Korean POW dispute

South Korea has announced its decision to recall its ambassador to Ukraine, the home country, as stated by the foreign ministry on Thursday.

In a brief statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs conveyed the government's desire for a constructive settlement of outstanding matters with Ukraine, affirming that diplomatic engagement between the two nations will remain ongoing.

With this decision of sending the Kyiv envoy back to home country, Seoul does not rule out the possibility of continuing negotiations to resolve the dispute related to North Korean POW transfer.

However, the ministry did not elaborate further details.

The two countries have been locked in diplomatic spate after Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy publicly disclosed that Kyiv transferred two captured North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea at the UN General Assembly speech.

According to Seoul, Zelenskyy violated the confidentiality of the agreement signed during the agreement. However, Ukraine denied the existence of such a confidentiality clause.

After disclosing information, diplomatic relations worsened as South Korea’s presidential office asked for an official apology over the unilateral disclosure. President Lee Jae Myung also later threatened the country with unspecified measures in the case of no apology.

Ukraine has not yet responded to this report.