Zelensky proposes an exchange of North Korean troops

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, says that he is ready to hand over two captured soldiers from North Korea to his homeland in exchange for Ukrainian prisoners of war in Russia.

“For those North Korean soldiers who do not want to return, there may be other options,” Zelensky said on social media, adding that “those who express a desire to bring peace closer by spreading the truth about this war in the Korean language will be given such an opportunity.”

Ukraine said on Saturday that the men were captured on January 9.

When asked last year, President Vladimir Putin did not deny that Russia was using North Korean troops in the war against Ukraine, saying it was Russia’s “sovereign decision.”

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) reported that two men are in Kyiv and receiving medical care.

They speak only Korean and are being interrogated with the help of South Korea’s NIS (National Intelligence Service), the intelligence service said.

On Saturday, Zelensky published photos of injured men on social networks.

He also shared a photo of a red Russian military ID showing his place of birth as Turan, in the Republic of Tuva, which is near Mongolia.

The special service stated that at the time of the capture of the prisoners, one of the soldiers had a Russian military ticket issued in the name of another person with a residence permit in the Republic of Tuva. The second had no documents.

The special service said that during the interrogation, one of the soldiers told the security forces that the document was issued to him in Russia in the fall of 2024.

He is believed to have said that at the time, some of North Korea’s combat units had undergone a week of interoperability training.

“It is noteworthy that the prisoner… emphasizes that he allegedly went to training, and not to fight against Ukraine,” the SBU said in a statement.

A statement from Zelensky’s office on Saturday said that the Russians are “trying to hide the fact that these are military personnel from North Korea by issuing them with documents proving that they are from Tuva or other territories under Moscow’s control.”

Intelligence said the soldier with the ID card said he was born in 2005 and has been serving in North Korea as a gunner since 2021.

The second prisoner reportedly gave some answers in writing because his jaw was damaged, the SBU reports.

Intelligence said it believed he was born in 1999 and had served in North Korea as a reconnaissance sniper since 2016.

The Geneva Convention states that interrogation of prisoners must be conducted in a language they understand and that prisoners must be protected from public curiosity.

BBC News and other international media have not yet confirmed Ukraine’s information about the prisoners and their capture.

At the end of last year, Ukraine and South Korea reported that North Korea had sent at least 10,000 soldiers to Russia.

The White House said North Korean forces were suffering massive casualties.

In December, South Korean intelligence said a North Korean soldier believed to be the first to be captured supporting Russia’s war in Ukraine had died after being captured by Ukrainian forces.

On Sunday, Zelensky said that “there should be no doubt that the Russian army is dependent on North Korea’s military aid.”