Ukraine-Russia war latest: Row breaks out between Kyiv and key ally over captured North Korean soldiers
South Korea has vowed to escalate its row with Ukraine over the announcement of two North Korean POWs’ transfer to Seoul, saying the country’s “dignity” is at stake.
Ukraine has sought to play down the row as a “diplomatic misunderstanding”, but on Friday South Korean president Lee Jae Myung said his country would take “further action” if Kyiv does not apologise and continues to deny the existence of a confidentiality agreement related to the POWs.
Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky revealed at the UN General Assembly last week that the prisoners had been sent to South Korea, angering Seoul which expected the transfer to remain secret. They were the first two North Koreans captured alive from a contingent sent to join Vladimir Putin’s invasion forces.
Earlier, Putin said Russia will use all the weapons at their disposal if the country is attacked by Europe in his latest sabre-rattling threat.
The Russian president reiterated Moscow’s long-held position that Russia is not planning to attack European countries, but said it would respond to any attacks with all its arsenal.
