President Lee: "Keeping North Korean POW Repatriation Undisclosed Was Valid and Justified Measure"

President Lee Jae-myung refuted criticism from the conservative opposition over not disclosing the repatriation to South Korea of two North Korean prisoners of war who fought in the Russia-Ukraine war, saying, "It is not right to criticize a valid and justified non-disclosure measure."

President Lee, who is currently on a state visit to Mexico, emphasized on social media on September 24 local time that "the issue of repatriating North Korean prisoners of war to the country is an extremely sensitive agenda that significantly affects diplomacy, national security, and the situation on the Korean Peninsula."

On September 23 local time, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy disclosed in an address to the UN General Assembly that "recently, two North Korean prisoners of war were sent to the Republic of Korea."

In response, the conservative opposition leveled criticism at the government for keeping the matter undisclosed, asking, "Why did our government not reveal it?"

Regarding this, President Lee retorted, "From the standpoint of those who would not care what happens to inter-Korean relations, whether someone dies, or whether national interests are compromised, and who would have banged gongs, danced, and advertised the repatriation of prisoners to the entire world just to take credit for an achievement, our government's efforts to keep it confidential would not only be incomprehensible, but they might even wonder, 'What could possibly be the problem?'"

He added, "Considering national interests such as someone's life and national security, one cannot be this cruel and irresponsible."

"Why would there not have been internal arguments to disclose the repatriation of North Korean prisoners of war to the country, which would clearly help recover government approval ratings?" President Lee asked, emphasizing that "considering the various problems that disclosure would cause, keeping it undisclosed was valid in every respect, and that was how it was agreed upon."

He continued, "A person who harms someone's life, national interest, and security for their own trivial gain is called a murderer or a traitor," adding that "it is not right to criticize a valid and justified non-disclosure measure."

President Lee also wrote, "I do not know what circumstances the Ukrainian side had in disclosing it in violation of the confidentiality agreement, but it is very regrettable."
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.