ICRC in contact with Russia, Ukraine over foreign POWs in ongoing war

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) remains in contact with the Russian and Ukrainian authorities over its "regular and full" access to people detained in the ongoing war against Kyiv, including foreign nationals, its head of mission in Seoul has said.

Barbara Rizzoli, the new head of the Seoul ICRC office, made the remark amid the prolonged conflict, where more than 11,000 North Korean troops are believed to be fighting alongside Moscow.

While declining to confirm whether the ICRC has reached the North Korean captives, Rizzoli said all concerned authorities are obliged by international law to grant the aid organization access to prisoners of war (POWs), strictly on a confidential basis.

"The ICRC is, in general, in contact with both the Russian Federation and Ukraine, when it comes to access to prisoners of war and people that have been deprived of their liberty or detained during the conflict," she said in an interview with Yonhap News Agency on Thursday.

"This includes also foreign nationals," Rizzoli said.

Last month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed that Ukraine had captured two wounded North Korean soldiers on Russia's western Kursk front lines and released photos and videos of them, with one of them saying he wanted to stay in Ukraine.

Rizzoli pointed out that the confidential nature of the dialogue, which is also limited to a bilateral format, enables the ICRC to have regular and full access to people in vulnerable situations.

Regarding whether the captured North Korean soldiers should be legally recognized as POWs, Rizzoli said they should receive the same treatment as POWs until their status is determined by a relevant international authority.

"You grant them the same protections," she said. "Even if there's doubt that this person is a prisoner of war, the same guarantees that are given to prisoners of war should be given to this person until his or her status is determined by a competent tribunal."

Founded in 1863, the ICRC is committed to protecting and assisting victims of armed conflict and violence, in accordance with its mandate under the Third Geneva Conventions. Its global network spans 101 delegations and missions across more than 100 countries, including its Seoul branch, established in 2015.

The ICRC mission in North Korea has remained closed since the COVID-19 pandemic, with little progress toward its reopening.

"We've been in contact with the DPRK National (Red Cross) Society, and we're ready to resume our operations and activities in the DPRK if the circumstances allow," Rizzoli said.

DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, North Korea's official name.

Rizzoli, whose previous missions included work in the Gaza Strip and Ukraine, called for a "united front" in upholding international humanitarian law, especially the protection of civilians and key infrastructure, to ensure minimum living standards even during conflict.

"People will be able to go through conflicts in a better way, and it's also easier for the transition to peace," she said.

As for the Ukraine war, a "political decision" will eventually have to be made to resolve the conflict, Rizzoli added.

Rizzoli cast South Korea as an "important stakeholder" for the ICRC, with its annual contributions having surpassed 10 million Swiss francs ($11 million) in 2022. South Korea has joined the top donors' list, known as the Donor Support Group (DSG), for the 2024-25 cycle.

With such contributions, the ICRC has been able to carry out key relief projects in Ukraine, including providing medicine and equipment to 21 specialized hospitals near the front lines and restoring some 10 hospitals.

"Because of the role (South Korea) plays internationally, we are witnessing an increase in the presence of Korea and the voice and influence that it has globally on multilateral fora," she said.

Rizzoli expressed hope the ICRC could further deepen cooperation with South Korea in the military application of artificial intelligence (AI), highlighting the country's active engagement in AI governance, notably through its hosting of the AI summit last year.

Regulating the use of AI in the military has become a critical issue in the humanitarian aid field, as its potential misuse, such as unsupervised weapons systems, could pose grave dangers to civilians and social infrastructure, Rizzoli said

"All implications have to be discussed," she said. "They are very important matters on which we really look forward to exchanging (opinions) with the Republic of Korea." (Yonhap)