Ukraine sends two captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea, Zelensky says

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Wednesday that Ukraine had transferred two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea. The soldiers were captured by Ukrainian forces in Russia's Kursk region in January 2025, where they had been deployed to support Russian troops. South Korea did not publicly confirm the transfer, citing safety concerns. The two soldiers had reportedly expressed a desire to defect to South Korea. They were part of a larger deployment of about 14,000 to 15,000 North Korean troops to Russia since 2024.