‘Embarrassing’ US leak sparks spying concerns in South Korea, complicates push to arm Ukraine

A trove of leaked classified documents suggest Washington has been listening in on internal discussions among top South Korean security officials

Analysts say the leak will complicate a US effort for Seoul to arm Ukraine, and take the gloss off an impending state visit by President Yoon Suk-yeol

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The Pentagon is seen from the air in Washington. US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin, the Pentagon chief, held phone talks with his South Korean counterpart on Tuesday to explain about the leak, Seoul said. Photo: Reuters

Published: 9:45am, 11 Apr 2023

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol’s highly anticipated state visit to the United States later this month could be clouded by leaked classified documents that indicate possible spying by Washington of Seoul’s top officials, analysts said.

Washington has been scrambling in recent days to trace the source of the leaks, after highly classified documents appeared online detailing topics including US allies’ positions on the Ukraine-Russia war, China, the Middle East and Africa matters.

A document seen by Reuters gave details of internal discussions among senior South Korean officials about US pressure on Seoul to help supply weapons to Ukraine, and the East Asian nation’s policy of not exporting arms to countries at war.

A senior official at the Korean presidential office on Monday said Seoul would call for Washington to take “appropriate measures” after the two countries got to the bottom of the incident.

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol meets US President Joe Biden during an event on the sidelines of an Asean summit in November. Photo: EPA-EFE/Yonhap

“This demand will be made on the basis of mutual trust as allies,” the unnamed official said. He added that the content of news reports were not verified facts, and that the leaked documents might have been “redacted or fabricated”.

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‘Embarrassing’ US leak sparks spying concerns in South Korea, complicates push to arm Ukraine

A trove of leaked classified documents suggest Washington has been listening in on internal discussions among top South Korean security officials Analysts say the leak will complicate a US effort for Seoul to arm Ukraine, and take the gloss off an impending state visit by President Yoon Suk-yeol

A trove of leaked classified documents suggest Washington has been listening in on internal discussions among top South Korean security officials

Analysts say the leak will complicate a US effort for Seoul to arm Ukraine, and take the gloss off an impending state visit by President Yoon Suk-yeol