12. Alternatively, Kyiv is willing to explore other options for North Korean soldiers who do not wish to return, he said. Zelensky's remarks come a day after the president announced on Jan. 11 that Ukrainain forces had captured two North Korean POWs in Russia's Kursk Oblast. The wounded soldiers are in the custody of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and are reportedly receiving medical attention. "In addition to the first captured soldiers from North Korea, there will undoubtedly be others," Zelensky said via his official Telegram channel on Jan. 12. "It is only a matter of time before our guys manage to capture more." Ukraine is prepared to return North Korean personnel in future prisoner exchanges or explore "other ways" of handling those captured soldiers who do not want to go back to North Korea, according to Zelensky.