US charges former CIA analyst of acting as an agent for South Korea

A former United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) analyst has been indicted on charges accusing her of acting as a secret South Korean agent in exchange for lavish gifts. The indictment — issued by the United States government on Tuesday, July 16 — said that Sue Mi Terry, who worked for the CIA and White House National Security Council under the administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama, pushed for South Korea policy positions and provided private U.S. government information to South Korean intelligence as well as allowing South Korean government officials access to their U.S. counterparts.

In exchange, South Korean intelligence agents allegedly provided her with dinner at Michelin-starred restaurants, expensive handbags and clothes, and more than $37,000 in “covert” funding for a public policy program on the Korean affairs she ran.

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According to the indictment, FBI agents warned Terry in 2014 of South Korean intelligence agents possibly offering to secretly pay for events. The indictment also said that during an FBI interview in 2023, Terry acknowledged she was a “source” for South Korea’s Intelligence Service, “meaning that she provided valuable information.”

The United States claims that Terry began work as a South Korean agent in 2013, just two years after she left the U.S. government. Allegedly, her covert efforts lasted a decade.

Terry is now reportedly a senior fellow at the Council of Foreign Relations and an expert on East Asia and the Korean Peninsula, which includes North Korea. The Council on Foreign Relations said it has put Terry on unpaid administrative leave and affirmed that it will cooperate with any investigation.

Terry’s lawyer called the allegations leveled in the indictment “unfounded” and said that they “distort the work of a scholar and news analyst known for her independence and years of service to the United States.”

The charges from the indictment include failing to register under the Foreign Relations Registration Act and conspiring to violate that law.

South Korea is not a defendant in the indictment. Seoul’s National Security Service said that it’s working closely with United State intelligence authorities.