South Korea to recall its ambassador to Ukraine over North Korean POW dispute

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea said Thursday it will recall its ambassador to Ukraine, stepping up its protest against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s recent revelation of a supposedly secret transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea.

The South Korean announcement came days after its President Lee Jae Myung threatened to take unspecified punitive steps if Ukraine refuses to apologize over the revelation.

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry didn’t say when the ambassador, Park Hee-chang, will be brought back home. A ministry statement said that South Korea will continue consultations with Ukraine, adding it hopes the dispute between the two countries would be resolved smoothly.

South Korea and Ukraine became embroiled in a diplomatic row after Zelenskyy spoke about the transfer of the North Korean soldiers during his U.N. speech on Sept. 23. South Korea has accused Ukraine of violating a nondisclosure agreement on their transfer in mid-September, but Kyiv has denied agreeing to such a deal.

The soldiers were among thousands of North Korean troops deployed to support Russia’s war against Ukraine. Since their capture in early 2025, the soldiers had expressed their desires to resettle in South Korea, because they could face persecution if repatriated home. South Korea had said it would accept them, because it legally regards the North as part of its territory and has a policy of accepting and financially supporting North Korean defectors.

South Korean officials said the non-disclosure agreement was made because they were concerned about the safety of the North Korean soldiers and their relatives in the North. But many experts say South Korea's liberal government likely also worries the disclosure of their arrival may hurt its efforts to improve ties with North Korea.

North Korea's state media hasn't commented on the soldiers' transfer. But the North previously reacted with fury to major defections of its citizens, accusing South Korea of kidnapping them. North Korea has shunned any talks with South Korea and the U.S. and focused on bolstering its nuclear program since 2019.

It's unclear what other steps South Korea would take. Experts say maintaining good relations with Ukraine is in South Korean national interests because Kyiv could provide Seoul with intelligence about North Korea's expanding cooperation with Russia and its battlefield experiences. They say cooperation with Ukraine is important for South Korea's partnerships with many Western countries supporting Ukraine over the war.

Observers say Zelenskyy disclosed the transfer of the North Korean POWs to expose the danger of North Korea's military support to Russia as a way to win more international assistance.

South Korea has provided $445 million in humanitarian assistance to Ukraine since 2022. In July, Lee pledged $100 million in aid to Ukraine in a meeting with Zelenskyy,

FILE - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly at United Nations headquarters, on Sept. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

LONDON (AP) — A 22-year-old British man arrested on suspicion of plotting a terror attack following a security incident at a U.S.-run military air base in England has been released on bail, authorities said Thursday.

The suspect, who was not named, is the seventh man bailed in the investigation of an apparent plot aimed at RAF Fairford air base, which has been used by American bombers to strike Iran.

British authorities have linked Tehran to the incident that led the U.S. to pull its bombers from RAF Fairford on Sunday.

The Trump administration believed the base faced Iranian threats intended to kill as many American troops and destroy as many U.S. planes as possible, according to a U.S. official, who was not authorized to comment publicly on the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said the U.K. sees “strong indications” that Iran played a part in the incident. He did not provide details about what the suspects were planning or why the U.K. thinks Iran was involved.

Iran has denied involvement, although it has previously said that it considers any base used to attack its territory a legitimate target.

Police are continuing to investigate the incident that led to scores of residents being evacuated from their homes near the base on Sept. 27 as armed police officers and army bomb-disposal experts swarmed the rural area.

Police later said they had found a quantity of an accelerant — gasoline — in three vans linked to the initial five suspects, but no explosives.

All the suspects arrested have been in their 20s and six have been British nationals while one is a dual U.K.-Iranian citizen.

The U.K.-owned base, 100 miles (160 kilometers) west of London, was used by American B-1 and B-52 bombers during the Iran war.

The British government allowed the U.S. military to use RAF Fairford for what it called defensive strikes on Iranian missiles and their launch sites following Iranian attacks on U.K. interests and Britain’s allies in the Gulf.

A B-1 bomber takes off from RAF Fairford in Fairford, England, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)