Ex-CIA Official Accused of Spying for South Korea

Former CIA analyst and senior official at the National Security Council, Sue Mi Terry, faces serious allegations of acting as a secret agent for South Korea's intelligence service. 

The U.S. Justice Department has charged Terry with accepting luxury goods, such as designer handbags and expensive sushi dinners, as well as over $37,000 in covert funding in exchange for promoting South Korean government positions during media appearances and sharing confidential information. 

The indictment claims Terry facilitated meetings between U.S. and South Korean officials and even passed handwritten notes from a private June 2022 meeting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken regarding U.S. policy towards North Korea. 

Prosecutors argue that Terry failed to register as a foreign agent with the Justice Department, which deprived Congress of the opportunity to evaluate her testimony fully. 

"These allegations are unfounded and distort the work of a scholar and news analyst known for her independence and years of service to the United States," stated Terry's lawyer, Lee Wolosky. 

Wolosky emphasized that Terry has not held a security clearance for over a decade and maintained a critical stance towards the South Korean government during the period she was accused of espionage. 

Terry served in the U.S. government from 2001 to 2011, initially as a CIA analyst and later as the Director for Korea, Japan and Oceanic Affairs at the National Security Council. 

After leaving government service, she joined the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) as a senior fellow, a role from which she has now been placed on unpaid leave pending the investigation. 

Prosecutors claim Terry received luxury items, including a $2,845 Dolce & Gabbana coat and a $3,450 Louis Vuitton handbag, along with lavish meals, in return for her cooperation with South Korean intelligence. They allege that her covert activities began in 2013, five years after she left the CIA and National Security Council. 

"Compromising national security endangers every American by weakening our defenses and putting lives at risk," FBI Acting Assistant Director in Charge Christie M. Curtis said in a statement. 

South Korea's National Intelligence Service stated that intelligence authorities in South Korea and the U.S. are in close communication regarding the case. Meanwhile, South Korea's Foreign Ministry has refrained from commenting on the judicial proceedings in a foreign country. 

Terry’s indictment highlights the significance of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), which mandates individuals acting on behalf of foreign governments to register with the U.S. government. 

On disclosure forms filed with the House of Representatives, where she testified multiple times between 2016 and 2022, Terry stated she was not an "active registrant" and failed to disclose her covert work with South Korea, thus preventing Congress from fairly evaluating her testimony. 

Lee Wolosky defended Terry, asserting, "In fact, she was a harsh critic of the South Korean government during times this indictment alleges that she was acting on its behalf. Once the facts are made clear it will be evident the government made a significant mistake."