Few can know better than diplomats about how to handle diplomatic and security secrets. If anyone leaks these secrets intentionally or accidentally, they may face stern punishment. Despite this, a diplomat at the Korean Embassy in Washington, D.C., leaked to an opposition lawmaker the details of a May 7 phone conversation between President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Donald Trump.
Such a leak undoubtedly constitutes a criminal, not to mention professional ethics, violation. It is a direct result of lax discipline on the part of the embassy official. It also reveals how incompetent and irresponsible the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is in ensuring the integrity of diplomats. More seriously, the case is not an isolated incident. It is part of a set of policy blunders and diplomatic discourtesies in recent months.
The ministry has discovered that a councilor at the embassy disclosed the Moon-Trump conversation to Rep. Khang Hyo-shang of the conservative opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) earlier this month. The official seemed to have put private affinity to Khang, who went to the same high school as him, before his official duties. Khang also looked after his own political interest, putting the nation's diplomacy on the backburner.
The diplomat should be subject to harsh punishment. He may face up to five years in prison or a fine of up to 10 million won ($8,400) if found guilty of violating the law banning the leakage of confidential diplomatic information. His act cannot and should not be condoned because the leak could undermine the credibility of Korea's diplomacy.
Rep. Kang should also take political, if not legal, responsibility. He must have known that the confidential details of the phone talks between the leaders of the two countries should not be made public under any circumstances. But he risked damaging the country's diplomatic trust with its traditional ally. He apparently did so as part of his political offensive against the Moon administration.
His aim was apparently to criticize the liberal government for its “begging diplomacy” to ask for Trump to visit the country amid soured inter-Korean ties and stalled denuclearization talks between Pyongyang and Washington. Based on what he heard from the diplomat, Khang told reporters on May 9 that Moon begged Trump to visit Seoul immediately after his May 25-28 trip to Japan.
Khang quoted Trump as saying a short stop on his way home following a visit to Japan would be enough if he does visit South Korea. He added that Trump would have to leave soon after meeting Moon because of his busy schedule. The government denied what Khang said. But later, it announced that Trump would visit Seoul right after the G20 summit scheduled for June 28 to 29 in Osaka.
The episode is now turning into a political row between the ruling camp and the opposition party. The LKP leadership has come to Khang's rescue. It has defended Kang's revelation as whistle-blowing aimed at publicizing Moon's subservient attitude toward the U.S. It has also made the case for the public's right to know. This squabble will only deepen partisan strife and deal a further blow to national prestige.