Presidential Office: "Secret Organization Involving HID Agents in the Security Office? ... Fake News"

"Security Office Organization Is the Information Fusion Team"
"Not a Team Reporting to the President or First Lady"

Presidential Office, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

The Presidential Office denied allegations that there was a secret organization within the National Security Office composed of former North Korean infiltration agents (HID) who directly report to President Yoon Seok-yeol or First Lady Kim Geon-hee, calling it "fake news."

On the 22nd, the Presidential Office issued a press release stating, "The National Security Office has informed us as follows," and clarified the suspicions regarding a secret organization composed of HID agents within the National Security Office.

The Presidential Office explained, "The team where personnel with HID service experience currently work in the Security Office is not a secret organization but an information fusion team assigned to the Crisis Management Center," adding, "The information fusion team is a streamlined organization specialized in North Korea information analysis, evolved from the previous administration's Information Fusion Secretariat."

Earlier, MBC reported that a secret organization composed of several members, including HID agents and National Intelligence Service staff, existed within the Security Office. This organization used the Crisis Management Center building of the Security Office, but even employees on the same floor were reportedly unaware of their roles, and it was said that they were not under the control of Ahn Sung-hwan, the Security Office's second deputy chief.

It was also reported that this organization was disbanded at the end of last year, and the opposition party suspects that they were a separate intelligence organization directly reporting to President Yoon or First Lady Kim.

In response, the Presidential Office rebutted that this organization is the information fusion team, which was established with its purpose and background disclosed during the transition committee briefing on May 1, 2022, and is still in operation.

The Presidential Office claimed, "The reports suggesting that there is a separate organization directly reporting to the President or First Lady are absurd fake news attempting to link this to a martial law situation by any means."

The Presidential Office also denied allegations that Kim Tae-hyo, the first deputy chief of the Security Office, visited the HID training center in Gangwon Province on behalf of President Yoon last June, stating, "This is completely untrue," and "the President's visit to the HID training center was never even considered."