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| ▲ This file photo shows the presidential office in Seoul. (Yonhap) |
(News Focus) US eavesdropping-S Korea
(News Focus) Leaked documents put S. Korea in awkward situation ahead of Yoon's state visit to U.S.
By Lee Haye-ah
SEOUL, April 10 (Yonhap) -- The leak of purported U.S. documents containing information gleaned from eavesdropping on allies like South Korea has put Seoul in an awkward situation as it came just about two weeks before President Yoon Suk Yeol goes on a state visit to Washington.
According to reports from The New York Times and The Washington Post, a set of leaked Pentagon documents shared on social media revealed that U.S. intelligence services eavesdropped on conversations at the South Korean presidential office in early March regarding whether to provide weapons support to Ukraine.
The NYT reported the documents as saying that Yoon's foreign affairs secretary told National Security Adviser Kim Sung-han the government "was mired in concerns that the U.S. would not be the end user if South Korea were to comply with a U.S. request for ammunition."
U.S. attempts to secretly listen to conversations of top South Korean officials, if confirmed, would represent foul play on a key Asian ally and a testament to how vulnerable the presidential office building is to spying attempts.
But mishandling the issue could raise tensions with the U.S. at a time when Yoon prepares to travel to Washington later this month for talks with U.S. President Joe Biden in what would be the first state visit by a South Korean president in 12 years.
Seoul also needs U.S. help in reining in an increasingly bellicose North Korea, including strengthening the U.S. "extended deterrence" protection of the country, and minimizing negative effects that U.S. acts on semiconductors and electric vehicles could have on South Korea's economy.
Yoon's office remains cautious.
"We haven't determined yet whether the reports are true, so we need to consult with the U.S.," a senior presidential official told Yonhap News Agency on Monday.
Another senior official said Washington will share the results of investigations opened by the U.S. Justice Department and the Pentagon into the leak, adding, "There is no question about our confidence in the U.S."
An official at the South Korean Embassy in Washington echoed the sentiment, saying, "The South Korea-U.S. alliance itself is firm."
Yoon was reportedly briefed on the matter on Sunday and ordered aides to look at the issue carefully.
The revelation that Washington wiretaps and eavesdrops on its allies came as little surprise as similar incidents have happened in the past.
In 2013, documents leaked from the U.S. National Security Agency showed the U.S. had bugged the South Korean Embassy in Washington and dozens of other diplomatic missions.
The South Korean government at the time demanded an explanation from the U.S. and reportedly received a response that Washington would review its intelligence operations.
Critics, however, accused the Yoon administration of exposing itself to eavesdropping by hastily relocating the presidential office without putting proper security measures in place.
Yoon relocated the presidential office from the former presidential complex of Cheong Wa Dae to what was then the defense ministry headquarters to help him connect better with the public.
In a radio interview on Monday, Rep. Kim Byung-joo of the main opposition Democratic Party claimed various wiretapping and eavesdropping devices could have been mixed in with other equipment during the relocation process.
"The bigger problem is that there is a U.S. military base right next to the presidential office," he said, referring to what remains of the former headquarters of the U.S. Forces Korea.
Kim also called for reconsidering the South Korea-U.S. summit slated for April 26, claiming some countries canceled state visits following similar incidents in the past.
Presidential officials acknowledged the need to reinforce security measures at the presidential office if necessary but ruled out any connection between the relocation and the alleged eavesdropping.
"The South Korea-U.S. relationship must not be damaged recklessly for the sake of political warfare," a presidential official said.
Has the SK-US alliance been hit by leaked documents or fake news?[https://youtu.be/Z-Rnq5GOod4]
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