South Korean opposition lawmaker slams Seoul over Ukraine dispute, plans thank-you letter to Zelenskyy
A prominent South Korean opposition lawmaker has criticized President Lee Jae Myung's administration over its escalating diplomatic dispute with Ukraine, accusing Seoul of hostility toward Kyiv while failing to confront Russia and North Korea.
Na Kyung-won, a five-term lawmaker from the main opposition People Power Party, said on October 9 that she planned to send a letter of gratitude to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to “correct the government's misguided diplomacy” and “reaffirm the values of solidarity among liberal democracies,” The Korea Herald reported.
Her statement came a day after South Korea's Foreign Ministry announced it was recalling its ambassador to Ukraine amid growing tensions between the two countries.
“The Lee Jae-myung administration cannot utter a single word of protest against North Korea, which injured our soldiers with land mines along the Military Demarcation Line, or against Russia, the aggressor nation. Yet it repays Ukraine's goodwill in repatriating North Korean prisoners of war with hostility,” Na wrote on Facebook.
She described Seoul's response as an “utterly excessive slight against Ukraine” that was difficult to understand from the standpoint of South Korea's national interests and security.
Na argued that the government should set aside disagreements with Kyiv and pursue closer cooperation, particularly given the possibility that more North Korean prisoners of war could be transferred to South Korea.
She accused Lee and his administration of repeatedly expressing “emotional outrage” and creating a diplomatic crisis that benefited Russia and North Korea.
What sparked the dispute?
Tensions between Kyiv and Seoul escalated after Zelenskyy disclosed during his address to the UN General Assembly that North Korean prisoners of war captured by Ukrainian forces were being transferred to South Korea.
Seoul accused Ukraine of violating an agreement to keep the transfers confidential, arguing that the issue was highly sensitive for South Korea's diplomacy and national security.
Ukraine denied that such an agreement existed. Presidential communications adviser Dmytro Lytvyn said Kyiv had made no commitment to conceal the transfers.
South Korea subsequently demanded an apology and accused Ukraine of undermining trust between the two governments.
The dispute widened this week after Ukrainian presidential sanctions commissioner Vladyslav Vlasiuk said petroleum shipments from South Korean ports had helped Russia offset fuel shortages caused by Ukrainian strikes on its refineries.
South Korea's presidential office rejected the allegation as “inaccurate and inappropriate,” saying the country had consistently enforced sanctions and export controls against Russia in coordination with international partners.
Seoul has not publicly provided a detailed explanation for recalling its ambassador, saying only that it hoped outstanding issues between the two countries would be resolved.
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