Presidential Office Says "Moon Jae-in Administration Must Be Held Accountable" Over Exposure of NIS Activities in the US

Exposure of NIS Activities During Sumi Terry Prosecution Process
Presidential Office Calls It "Moon Government's Work" Amid Lax Intelligence Operations

In November last year, Sumi Terry is giving a greeting at a documentary film screening related to North Korean defectors held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The Presidential Office pointed out that the exposure of National Intelligence Service (NIS) agents' activities during the indictment of Sumi Terry, a Korea expert and senior fellow at the U.S. Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), by federal prosecutors for working for the South Korean government without reporting to the U.S. government, was "all something that happened during the Moon Jae-in administration."

On the 18th, a Presidential Office official met with reporters at the Yongsan Presidential Office and, when asked whether government-level inspections or disciplinary actions were underway regarding the exposure of NIS agents, said, "If inspections or disciplinary actions are conducted, it seems like the Moon Jae-in administration itself would have to be inspected or disciplined," making this remark.

The official added, "After the Moon Jae-in government took power and reorganized the NIS, they removed agents capable of professional diplomatic activities and filled the ranks with amateurs, which probably led to such issues."

He then added, "That's a good point, and we will consider (inspections or disciplinary actions)."

Earlier, on the 16th (local time), U.S. federal prosecutors indicted Sumi Terry, a former CIA North Korea expert, on charges of acting as an agent for the South Korean government. Prosecutors allege that she acted on behalf of the South Korean government in exchange for expensive dinners and luxury handbags.

The indictment states that Sumi Terry worked at the CIA from 2001 until her retirement in 2008, and began acting as an agent for the South Korean government starting in June 2013, five years later.

The issue is that the indictment details gifts, meals, and conversations that Sumi Terry received from NIS agents who were dispatched to the U.S. under diplomatic status.

In particular, closed-circuit television (CCTV) photos showing Sumi Terry visiting luxury brand stores with NIS agents and dining together at upscale restaurants were attached.

This means that the unofficial activities of our NIS were fully exposed to U.S. intelligence surveillance. Consequently, in diplomatic circles, voices have emerged calling for more cautious intelligence activities, pointing out that the lax operations of our intelligence agency were fully revealed through this incident.