Increase in Police National Security Investigation Personnel... Concerns Over Shortage of Experts
Candidate for NIS Director Also a Variable on Restoration of Counterintelligence Investigation Authority
Head of National Security Headquarters: "Police Have Conducted National Security Investigations Since Liberation"
The authority to investigate crimes violating the National Security Act, such as espionage, known as 'counterintelligence investigation authority,' was fully transferred from the National Intelligence Service (NIS) to the police this year. While the police claim to have thoroughly prepared by increasing security investigation personnel, concerns have been raised that limitations may arise due to a shortage of specialized personnel.
Cho Tae-yong, the nominee for the director of the NIS, expressed the need to restore the counterintelligence investigation authority transferred to the police, suggesting that debates may continue for some time. Cho stated, “In the past five years, it has been identified that spies mainly contact North Korean operatives overseas, making overseas infrastructure essential for espionage investigations,” adding, “It is also necessary to consider the recent severe security situation.”
Transferred after 63 years... Police increase investigation teams and personnel
Counterintelligence investigation authority refers to the power to identify spies or leftist offenders and apply charges under the National Security Act to investigate them. It was included in the Central Intelligence Agency Act (now the NIS Act), which was promulgated immediately after the establishment of the Central Intelligence Agency (now NIS) on June 10, 1961, and was concretized in its 1963 amendment. However, controversies surrounding counterintelligence investigation authority persisted due to fabricated espionage cases by the NIS since the Central Intelligence Agency era.
Accordingly, in 2020, during the Moon Jae-in administration, the National Assembly passed an amendment to the NIS Act that removed the counterintelligence investigation authority from the NIS. After a three-year grace period, this was implemented starting January 1 of this year, officially abolishing the NIS's counterintelligence investigation authority and assigning it entirely to the police. This marks the first transfer in 63 years since the establishment of the Central Intelligence Agency.
To conduct counterintelligence investigations, the police established the Security Investigation Bureau under the National Police Agency's National Investigation Headquarters and also created a Security Investigation Research and Education Center. Under the Security Investigation Bureau, a specialized elite team called the 'Security Investigation Unit' was newly formed to handle core investigations. The police also plan to increase the number of security investigation officers in each metropolitan police agency to build a regional-level investigation system.
The total number of security investigation personnel increased by about 56%, from 724 last year to 1,127 this year. Among them, pure counterintelligence investigation personnel number around 700, about a 75% increase from the previous 400. Although most are internal reallocations, 20 new hires are security experts. Since last year, a 'Security Investigator Qualification Management System' has been implemented to manage the capabilities of investigators. Yoon Hee-geun, Commissioner of the National Police Agency, said, “As we enter the first year of a police-centered security investigation system, we will fundamentally innovate security investigation capabilities.”
Three years of preparation... Is police investigative capability sufficient?
Although the counterintelligence investigation authority has already been transferred to the police, controversy remains. Due to the presidential election phase following the legal amendment and changes in government policy regarding the role of the NIS after a regime change, concerns about investigative gaps have been raised because the transfer of investigative duties has not proceeded smoothly.
A shortage of specialized personnel is also identified as a problem. The police lack overseas counterintelligence networks, and due to the personnel system that moves staff between functions, there are concerns about difficulties in maintaining continuity and expertise in investigations. While domestic intelligence is handled by the police, if overseas intelligence collection remains the responsibility of the NIS, there may be considerable time wasted before intelligence obtained by the NIS is passed to the police for investigation.
Woo Jong-su, Director of the National Investigation Headquarters, National Police Agency. [Photo by Yonhap News]
The police maintain that there is no problem as they have continuously conducted counterintelligence investigations in the past. Woo Jong-su, head of the National Investigation Headquarters of the National Police Agency, said, “The police have been conducting security investigations since liberation,” adding, “Statistics show that the police handled three-quarters of all security offender arrests.”
He emphasized that active utilization of the NIS's existing overseas infrastructure and timely sharing of intelligence, along with cooperation between the two agencies, will suffice.
Woo stated, “Since overseas intelligence collection realistically requires cooperation with the NIS, we have established a platform to coordinate tasks with the NIS,” emphasizing, “We will continue close cooperation with the NIS, the Defense Counterintelligence Command, and others.”
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