Ukrainian foreign minister meets South Korean counterpart: "We had a really good conversation"

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has said he had a "good conversation" with his South Korean counterpart Cho Hyun in Paris and announced that the two sides have agreed on an action plan to resume full-fledged dialogue between the two countries.

Source: Sybiha on the national joint 24/7 newscast following talks on the sidelines of the G7 foreign ministers' meeting in Paris, as reported by Interfax-Ukraine

Quote: "I think we had a good meeting. We deserve to have an extremely dynamic and high-level bilateral relationship with South Korea. We are grateful for the assistance that has been provided and will continue to be provided, and for its support for our territorial integrity and sovereignty. We had a really good conversation in which we spoke frankly about the recent unpleasant events and developments."

Details: Sybiha said the two sides have drawn up a clear action plan to resolve their diplomatic differences.

Read more: Why South Korea has fallen out with Ukraine but seeks reconciliation with North Korea: a Korean expert explains

Background:

• On 23 September, during his address to the UN General Assembly, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy mentioned that Ukraine had handed over two North Korean soldiers to South Korea. The soldiers had fought for Russia and were captured in Kursk Oblast in 2025.
• On 24 September, President Lee Jae-myung accused Zelenskyy of disclosing sensitive information and said that agreements had been violated. The Office of the President of Ukraine responded that the two sides had not signed any non-disclosure agreements, noting that the president had revealed only the fact of the handover and provided no operational details.
• On 8 October, South Korea's Foreign Ministry announced that it was recalling its ambassador to Ukraine, Park Hee-chang, amid the dispute between Kyiv and Seoul over the disclosure of information about the repatriation of the North Korean prisoners of war.
• On 27 October, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun announced the withdrawal of eight embassy staff members from Ukraine in view of Kyiv's failure to resolve the dispute.
• Seoul subsequently summoned Ukraine's ambassador and threatened additional measures if Kyiv did not issue a public apology.

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