Tak Hyun-min, Protocol Secretary at the Blue House, revealed on his Facebook on the 18th the code names for President Moon Jae-in's tour of three European countries and photos of a meeting held inside Air Force One. [Photo by Facebook]
[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] Tak Hyun-min, the Protocol Secretary at the Blue House, is causing controversy by posting diplomatic-related information on his personal social networking service (SNS) account.
On the 18th, Secretary Tak revealed on his Facebook the code name for President Moon Jae-in's tour of three European countries and photos of a meeting held inside Air Force One. He stated, "Overseas presidential events are given code names similar to passwords," adding, "This time, the event name was 'Concert'." It is highly unusual for the president's event code name to be disclosed externally. Furthermore, this is the first time a Blue House aide accompanying the president has revealed such information on a personal SNS.
Regarding this, the Blue House stated that since the European tour has concluded and code names have been disclosed post-event in the past, Secretary Tak's actions are not problematic. Secretary Tak explained, "Code names are meant to conceal the details of the tour. Previous administrations have also disclosed code names."
Tak Hyun-min, Protocol Secretary at the Blue House, revealed the code names for President Moon Jae-in's tour of three European countries and shared photos of a meeting held inside Air Force One on the 18th through his Facebook. [Photo by Facebook]
Secretary Tak also posted photos from inside Air Force One. The photos show President Moon receiving reports related to the tour from Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong, National Security Office Director Suh Hoon, and Policy Chief Lee Ho-seung inside the presidential aircraft. Secretary Tak explained, "In-flight meetings are frequently held inside Air Force One during transit." The internal structure of Air Force One is known to be classified information.
In July 2017, during the G20 summit held in Germany, the Blue House posted photos of the interior of Air Force One on its official SNS account but later deleted them citing security reasons. Since then, the internal structure of Air Force One has generally not been disclosed. In response, Secretary Tak stated, "The Air Force One photos I have posted have undergone security review and contain no sensitive elements," adding, "There are no security concerns with the photos posted this time either."
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