North Korean soldier sent to Russia: ”If I return to my homeland as part of a prisoner exchange, my parents will be executed”

"If I were to become a prisoner of war now and be exchanged and go to my homeland (North Korea), my parents would probably not be alive anymore (because they would have been executed). When I think about that, I lose all my energy all day."
Yoo Young-won, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, said on the 27th that "North Korean prisoners were not included in the list of 1,000 prisoners to be exchanged between Ukraine and Russia," and
Rep. Yoo said, "If he is repatriated to North Korea, I want the cries of soldier Ri, who already foresaw his and his parents' tragic end, to not become an empty echo, but to live in the land of freedom of the Republic of Korea.
"I hope that the government authorities will make every effort to the end so that we can continue to take steps to resolve the issue," he said.
However, Rep. Yoo said that former North Korean soldiers Ri and Baek, who were captured by Ukrainian forces in January, were not included on the list of prisoners to be exchanged.
He will remain in the battlefield as a prisoner of war. Rep. Yoo visited Ukraine in February this year and met two North Korean soldiers. At the time, soldier Ri told Rep. Yoo that he intended to defect to the Republic of Korea and
Soldier Ku was also considering defecting to South Korea. The South Korean government has made it clear that it will accept all defectors if they so wish. Ukraine has also expressed its intention to "provide mutual assistance." Rep. Yoo said, "
"Even though they were POWs of the North Korean military, they are clearly our nationals under Article 3 of the Constitution of the Republic of Korea, and protecting the lives and freedoms of our citizens is a national responsibility that should take precedence over any diplomatic considerations," he said.
He also stated that, "There is an agreement in international law that prisoners of war should not be expelled or repatriated if their repatriation may threaten their life or freedom," and that this was the new government's foreign policy.
He once again urged further efforts.