The South Korean government has decided to recall its ambassador to Ukraine as diplomatic friction escalates over the repatriation of North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea.
Recalling an ambassador to one's home country is a diplomatic measure used to register a strong protest against a host nation, serving as a means to convey that there is a serious problem in bilateral relations without severing diplomatic ties.
In a statement released this afternoon (October 8), the government stated, "The government has decided to recall its ambassador to Ukraine."
It added, "The government hopes that pending bilateral issues will be resolved smoothly and will continue consultations with the Ukrainian side to that end."
The move comes as an additional diplomatic step following Seoul's summoning of the Ukrainian chargé d'affaires to lodge a protest last month, now escalating to calling its own envoy back home.
The decision comes amid a diplomatic conflict that erupted after Ukraine publicly disclosed the repatriation of two North Korean POWs to South Korea.
Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed during an address at the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 23 (local time) that two North Korean POWs, captured after fighting for Russia, had recently been sent to South Korea.
The following day, President Lee Jae-myung expressed regret via his social media accounts, stating that the Ukrainian side had disclosed the repatriation in breach of a confidential agreement.
The South Korean government maintains that while it had received prior notice from the Ukrainian side regarding the matter, the repatriation was disclosed without sufficient explanation or specific consultations.
Tensions escalated further after an official from the Ukrainian presidential office subsequently suggested that no confidential agreement existed between the two countries.
While the South Korean government insists that both sides agreed not to make the repatriation of North Korean POWs public, Ukraine has pushed back, denying the existence of such an agreement altogether.
On September 27, the presidential office took issue with Ukraine's denial of the confidential agreement and demanded an official explanation and apology.
The following day, on September 28, First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Park Yoon-joo summoned Andrii Beshkin, the Ukrainian chargé d'affaires to South Korea, to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to lodge a formal protest.
At that time, Vice Minister Park expressed deep regret over Ukraine unilaterally disclosing the repatriation despite their confidential agreement, pointing out that the Ukrainian presidential office's announcement had undermined bilateral trust.
Park also demanded an official explanation, an apology, and measures to prevent any recurrence.
Subsequent consultations between the foreign ministers of both countries followed, but the two sides failed to bridge differences regarding the level of Ukraine's apology.
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun stated during a parliamentary audit by the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee on Tuesday (October 6) that he had been in ongoing message exchanges with the Ukrainian foreign minister and had received a message containing an apology.
However, Cho noted, "Because it differs somewhat from the level we expected, we intend to take decisive measures."
Regarding Democratic Party of Korea Representative Lee Ki-heon's suggestion that South Korean Ambassador to Ukraine Park Ki-chang should be recalled, Cho replied, "We are reviewing that among other options."
On the same day, the presidential office also stated that it was seriously reviewing response measures, including recalling the ambassador to Ukraine.
The government's decision to actually recall the ambassador just two days later is seen as ratcheting up the level of its diplomatic response toward Ukraine.
However, by stating that it hopes pending issues between the two countries will be resolved smoothly and that consultations with Ukraine will continue, the government has left room for dialogue to manage the diplomatic rift.
Specific details regarding the timing of Ambassador Park Ki-chang's return to South Korea and the duration of the recall have not yet been disclosed.
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