The unification ministry has said discussions with relevant countries will be necessary regarding the question of bringing North Korean soldiers captured by the Ukrainian military to South Korea.

In a regular briefing Monday, ministry spokesperson Koo Byoung-sam said the issue requires a legal review, including considerations of international law.

When asked about media reports indicating the government plans to accept all North Korean soldiers who wish to resettle in South Korea, Koo dismissed the reports, declining to confirm them or make any comment.

The spokesperson added that separate international laws and treaties apply to prisoners of war, necessitating discussions with related countries. 

He emphasized that no conclusions can be drawn at this stage.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shared video footage of ​an interrogation of two North Korean soldiers captured in Russia’s Kursk region.

One of the soldiers expressed a desire to remain in Ukraine, before subsequently saying that he would follow orders.