High-ranking spy agency official abruptly resigns

By Kuksung Nam, The Readable
Oct. 26, 2022 8:13PM KST

A high-ranking official of the South Korean spy agency has abruptly resigned from his post, leaving questions about the reasons for his unexpected departure.

Cho Sang-joon, the head of Planning and Coordination of the National Intelligence Service, has offered his resignation on Tuesday after approximately four months in office, reported local news outlets on Wednesday. According to the reports, President Yoon Suk-yeol accepted his resignation on Tuesday evening.

His resignation came a day before the parliamentary audit of the spy agency which was planned to be held on this day. At first, a reason was not given for the head of Planning and Coordination’s departure. But soon after the initial reports, the Office of the President said that he resigned for personal reasons.

President Yoon formally nominated Cho Sang-joon, a former deputy chief of the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office, to serve as the head of Planning and Coordination of the NIS in June. The post is one of the highest ranking positions in the office, covering the budget and management of the spy agency.

nam@thereadable.co

The cover image of this article was designed by Areum Hwang.

Kuksung Nam is a cybersecurity journalist for The Readable. She covers cybersecurity issues in South Korea, including the public and private sectors. Prior to joining The Readable, she worked as a political reporter for one of the top-five local newspapers in South Korea, The Kyeongin Ilbo, where she reported several exclusive stories regarding the misconduct of local government officials. She is currently focused on issues related to anti-fraud, as well as threats and crimes in cyberspace. She is a Korean native who is fluent in English and French, and she is interested in delivering the news to a global audience.