The UN Human Rights Office says the North Korean soldier who has been taken prisoner in Ukraine must not be returned to his homeland, as he does not wish to go back.

UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Liz Throssell told the Voice of America(VOA) on Thursday that “international humanitarian law (IHL) requires prisoners of war to be treated humanely at all times and with respect for their honor in all circumstances.”

She was commenting on a North Korean soldier captured by Ukrainian forces last month reportedly expressing his wishes earlier this week to defect to South Korea.

Throssell then urged Ukrainian authorities “to give due consideration to their obligations under the principle of non-refoulement,” which prohibits countries from forcibly returning people to countries where they may face human rights violations. 

UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in North Korea Elizabeth Salmón told VOA that the North Korean prisoner’s wishes to defect to South Korea must be positively addressed, as she stressed that the main concern is the safety of these prisoners of war.
 
She said “if there are reasonable grounds to believe that prisoners of war will suffer torture, for instance, the detaining State should find a third state that can provide safety to prisoners of war.”