Military intelligence command in hot seat over spy scandal, internal conflict

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South Korea's military intelligence command is facing increasing scrutiny following internal conflicts within its ranks, a revelation that came just days after an intelligence official was arrested for allegedly leaking military secrets to a Chinese national.

These incidents raise serious concerns about lax discipline and poor operational readiness within the Korea Defense Intelligence Command (KDIC), especially at a time of increasing threats from North Korea, critics said Tuesday.

According to military sources, a brigadier general from the KDIC recently filed a complaint with the Ministry of National Defense's Investigation Headquarters, accusing the intelligence commander, a major general, of assault and abuse of authority. In response, the major general has accused the brigadier general of insubordination. The identities of both officers have not been disclosed.

The commander reportedly raised legal concerns in May about the brigadier general's intelligence activities, including the use of a civilian-owned facility for meetings. The brigadier general allegedly dismissed these concerns, accusing the major general of unnecessary interference as a "non-expert."

Tensions between the two escalated when the commander reportedly instructed his aide to monitor the brigadier general’s movements in the weeks that followed. The situation deteriorated further in June when the commander allegedly threw a document folder at the brigadier general, prompting him to file an assault complaint.

In response to these allegations, the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) criticized the incident, citing the internal disputes within the secretive military branch as evidence of deteriorating discipline.

"As Commander-in-Chief, President Yoon Suk Yeol must explain what actions are being taken to address such lax military discipline. It raises concerns that he has been talking about national security without implementing any concrete measures," said DPK spokesperson Choi Min-suk.

The DPK also highlighted the severity of these revelations that surfaced amid ongoing spy allegations involving a KDIC official.

South Korea's national flag is displayed alongside the flags of the Ministry of National Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the ministry headquarters in Seoul, Jan. 31. Newsis

Last Tuesday, the central military court issued an arrest warrant for a civilian employee on charges that include leaking military secrets, following a request from the military prosecution.

The employee, whose identity has been withheld, is accused of providing a Chinese national of Korean ethnicity with confidential documents, including lists of both "white" and "black" agents operating abroad. The leaked documents reportedly contained the real names, ages and locations of those agents.

The KDIC manages a network of black agents, some of whom operate under covert identities or as diplomats in foreign countries. While it is unclear whether the Chinese national is linked to North Korea, South Korea's intelligence agents in China are known to conduct operations related to North Korea through informants within the country.

The allegations became public in late July when several defense committee lawmakers reported receiving information from unspecified sources. The intelligence command later revealed that it had been aware of the issue since late April, which led to criticism over the delay in the investigation.

"This is a major incident that could lead to the collapse of South Korea's human intelligence capabilities. I don't think the military is taking this seriously enough," Yang Uk, a military expert at the Asan Institute of Policy Studies, told The Korea Times.

Yang suggested that the current internal probe by the military should be expanded to include law enforcement authorities for a more thorough investigation, particularly given emerging speculation that the information may have been leaked to North Korea.

The leak has had immediate consequences.

Several agents overseas, including those in China, are said to have abruptly returned to Seoul following the breach. Local media reports suggested that some informants in North Korea connected to South Korea’s undercover agents may have been executed as a result of the leak.

Furthermore, the scandal has exposed significant loopholes in South Korea's anti-espionage law.

Currently, the law defines espionage as "activities aimed at benefiting an enemy," with penalties including death, life sentence, or imprisonment for more than seven years. However, the law specifically identifies North Korea as the sole enemy state, meaning espionage benefiting other countries is not covered.

As such, the existing law may not adequately address the recent case, as the KDIC official is suspected of leaking information to a Chinese citizen.

In response, lawmakers from both conservative and liberal parties have proposed revisions to expand the definition of espionage to include foreign countries or foreign organizations.

Similar bills were proposed during the 21st Assembly, but failed, mainly due to concerns from the Office of Court Administration (OCA) about potential negative impacts on South Korea’s relations with foreign countries if such bills were passed.