▲ Elizabeth Salmon, special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in North Korea appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council, speaks during an interview with Yonhap News Agency on Feb. 6, 2026, in Seoul. (Yonhap)
▲ Elizabeth Salmon, special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in North Korea appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council, speaks during an interview with Yonhap News Agency on Feb. 6, 2026, in Seoul. (Yonhap)

(Yonhap Interview) UN rapporteur-NK soldiers

(Yonhap Interview) U.N. rapporteur says Ukraine obliged to not send N.K. soldiers to risk of torture

By Park Boram

SEOUL, Feb. 6 (Yonhap) -- The U.N. special rapporteur on North Korea's human rights said Friday it is up to Ukraine to decide where to send North Korean soldiers captured during its war with Russia, but it should follow the international obligation not to send them to places where they could face torture.

Elizabeth Salmon, special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in North Korea appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council, made the call as two young North Koreans soldiers have been held in Ukraine for more than a year following Ukrainian forces' reported capture of them in January last year in what was once the front-line region of Russia's Kursk.

Through South Korean media, the North Korean soldiers expressed a wish to come to South Korea, with Seoul voicing its willingness to receive them through consultations with Ukraine.

"According to law, they (Ukraine) must decide what to do. It's not up to the two prisoners of war to decide where to go, necessarily," Salmon said in an interview with Yonhap News Agency. "It is not up to South Korea, but it is up to Ukraine respecting international human rights law obligations."

The rapporteur, nonetheless, emphasized Ukraine's obligation to make any decision with regard to the soldiers' safety, saying, "We must not forget that Ukraine has international legal obligations."

"One crucial legal obligation is the non-refoulement principle. It means not to send someone where there are reasonable grounds to believe that they could be subject to torture," she noted.

Salmon said she had confirmed during meetings with South Korean authorities Seoul's willingness to receive the North Korean soldiers once a repatriation decision is made by Ukraine, welcoming such a position.

"They are open and willing to receive these two people if they want to come and if Ukraine finally makes its decision to send them to (South Korea)," Salmon said. "So it seems ... they are open to this possibility. And it is good."

"So let's wait (until) Ukraine makes the best decision, and we can, of course, always provide support and technical assistance," she added.

Since late 2024, North Korea has sent more than 10,000 troops and conventional weapons to support Russia's war efforts, with thousands believed to have been killed in action.

Salmon, meanwhile, voiced substantial concerns over overt media exposure of the two North Korean soldiers' personal images and identities, calling for the protection of their privacy.

"I am very concerned about this. We must preserve their privacy, because they live in a very difficult situation," she said. "I was really shocked to watch the video and the news and the photographs. A little bit more of respect needs to be given to them."

Salmon, the fourth U.N. special rapporteur on North Korean human rights, is visiting Seoul on a five-day official trip through Friday, which included talks with vice foreign and unification ministers as well as North Korean defectors and civic groups.

Drawing on the results from her upcoming visit, Salmon will present her annual report to the Human Rights Council in March and to the General Assembly in September, the office said.

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