Zelensky’s UN disclosure punctures Pyongyang’s soldier-loyalty narrative, but risks damaging ties with Seoul and endangering POW families
4-MIN READ4-MINPark Chan-kyongPublished: 8:00am, 25 Sep 2026Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has put North Korea in a propaganda bind, analysts say, by publicly revealing that Kyiv recently transferred two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea.The disclosure – made during Zelensky’s address to the UN General Assembly on Wednesday – directly challenges Pyongyang’s narrative that its soldiers fighting alongside Russian forces choose death over surrendering.
“Recently, we sent two North Korean prisoners of war to the Republic of Korea,” Zelensky said during his UN address, using South Korea’s official name.
