Yoon Replaces Entire National Intelligence Service Leadership... Director and 1st, 2nd Deputy Directors' Resignations Accepted

Hong Jang-won, Former British Ambassador, Appointed as New First Deputy Director... Acting First Deputy Director for the Time Being
Ongoing Personnel Controversies... Eventually Spread Externally, Effectively Leading to Dismissal

President Yoon Suk-yeol abruptly replaced Kim Kyu-hyun, the Director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), on the 26th. This decision was made after returning from visits to the United Kingdom and France, and also includes the replacement of First Deputy Director Kwon Chun-taek (in charge of overseas affairs) and Second Deputy Director Kim Soo-yeon (in charge of North Korea affairs).

The Presidential Office announced that President Yoon accepted the resignations of NIS Director Kim Kyu-hyun, First Deputy Director Kwon Chun-taek, and Second Deputy Director Kim Soo-yeon on that day. President Yoon appointed Hong Jang-won, former Ambassador to the UK, as the new First Deputy Director, who will serve as acting director for the time being. Hwang Won-jin, former head of the North Korean Intelligence Bureau, was appointed as the new Second Deputy Director.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Presidential Office stated, "Director Kim Kyu-hyun worked to reestablish the status of the NIS as the nation’s top security intelligence agency during the regime transition period and to build cooperative systems with allied intelligence agencies," adding, "The newly appointed First and Second Deputy Directors are top experts with extensive experience in overseas intelligence and North Korea intelligence, respectively."

Some interpret the wholesale replacement of the NIS leadership as holding them accountable for the internal personnel disputes that surfaced publicly since June.

Earlier, around June, it was revealed that the NIS reversed a first-grade promotion, sparking rumors of conflicts between old and new powers and allegations of personnel manipulation. There were suspicions that Director Kim’s close aides abused their authority by excessively intervening in personnel matters. In response, the Presidential Office launched an investigation into the irregularities surrounding the NIS’s first-grade personnel affairs.

Last year, conflicts among the NIS leadership also surfaced over personnel issues. In October of last year, Cho Sang-jun, known as a close aide to President Yoon and head of the Planning and Coordination Office, resigned just four months after his appointment. Cho, who was the second-in-command overseeing the NIS’s organization, personnel, and budget, resigned just before the National Assembly’s audit, and the director was informed of this later, leading to speculation that there had been personnel conflicts.