Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back invoked a classical Chinese proverb — "you cannot carve a beautiful sculpture from rotten wood" — as he called on the newly established Defense Counterintelligence Headquarters to break with the dark past of South Korea's military intelligence agencies and rebuild itself around transparency, expertise and public trust.
Ahn made the remarks Monday morning at a founding ceremony held at the Constitution Values Hall on the third floor of the headquarters' main building, marking the official launch of the new organization.
The Defense Counterintelligence Headquarters formally launched Monday, taking on dedicated responsibilities for counterintelligence, defense industry intelligence and cybersecurity.
The agency was established under Ministry of National Defense General Order No. 182, effective July 31. It succeeds the Defense Counterintelligence Command, which was dissolved after 49 years — since the founding of the Capital Security Command in 1977 — following revelations that it had organized teams to arrest politicians and attempted to seize servers at the National Election Commission during the Dec. 3 emergency martial law declaration, triggering widespread public calls for its disbandment.
"What we are leaving behind today is the entire dark history of counterintelligence agencies that abandoned their core mission and became tools of power — from the May 16 military coup and the Dec. 12 military mutiny, through the May 18 emergency martial law, to the Dec. 3 insurrection," Ahn said. "This moment is a great turning point, moving from a 'closed era' to an 'open era.'"
He said the new agency had been designed as a specialized organization that "fundamentally abolishes the functions that enabled the accumulation of political power and concentrates its capabilities on its original mission," calling it "a solemn order from the people and a demand of the times."
As part of the reorganization, functions previously identified as instruments of political power — including surveillance of personal activities, personnel intelligence gathering and reputation monitoring — were entirely abolished. External oversight was also significantly strengthened, with a senior outside audit official appointed to head the inspector general's office and a new compliance and audit committee established directly under the minister.
Ahn outlined three principles for the headquarters' personnel.
First, he said, the agency must "approach the public with spotless transparency," adding that the newly established external inspection and legal oversight functions would serve as a shield protecting the organization's neutrality and legitimacy.
Second, it must "stay ahead of threats through a high level of expertise," he said, emphasizing the need to build future-oriented counterintelligence capabilities to counter cross-border economic espionage intensifying alongside the global expansion of South Korea's defense industry.
Third, he said, the agency must "move only toward earning the trust of the people," stressing that "transparency and expertise point to one destination only: the trust of the people."
"I will be a steadfast shield for you so that you can devote yourselves solely to your core mission," Ahn said. "I ask that you also transform yourselves completely and stand as guardians protecting the people and the front line of national security."
He closed his address by saying he "earnestly hopes" the headquarters will "rise as the foremost security and intelligence agency — loved by the people and recognized by the world."
The ceremony also included a reading of the unit activation order under General Order No. 182, a unit report by the headquarters' senior colonel from the Air Force, the minister's presentation of the unit flag, and the transfer of the flag to the headquarters' senior enlisted adviser.
rimsclub@heraldcorp.com
