JAKARTA - The United States has restricted the exchange of certain intelligence information about North Korea, after South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong-young publicly revealed Pyongyang's third nuclear site.
"It is true that the United States has restricted the exchange of some information on North Korean intelligence collected through satellites since the beginning of this month," a senior military official was quoted as saying by Yonhap as reported by ANTARA, Tuesday, April 21.
Although restricted, according to the Yonhap report, important data related to the launch of missiles and other activities of Pyongyang are still shared without interruption, so it does not affect Seoul's combat readiness.
The restrictions only minimally impacted military readiness. Intelligence exchange activities between South Korea and the United States continued as usual without disrupting either country's surveillance or intelligence systems.
The American move was triggered by Dong-young's statement in parliament on March 6, which said there was a location for uranium enrichment facilities in Kusong, in addition to the known nuclear sites in Yongbyon and Kangson.
The United States considers it an unauthorized disclosure of detailed and sensitive information. According to the South Korean news agency's report, the United States received data on North Korea using satellites, electronic intelligence, and other methods, and shared the data with allies.
Despite concerns about South Korea's intelligence capabilities, the restrictions do not pose a significant military risk and monitoring of North Korean activities continues to be intensive.
After the incident, Washington urged Seoul to prevent any further leaks in the future.
Despite concerns about the possible weakening of South Korea's intelligence capabilities, the limited restrictions do not pose a military risk and monitoring of North Korean missile activity and other movements remains vigilant as usual, Yonhap reported.
The South Korean Defense Ministry reaffirmed its intelligence cooperation with the United States and its response readiness remained unchanged.
Meanwhile, Chung Dong-young said his statement referred to open sources. Chung also hopes that the issue can be resolved through further communication between Seoul and Washington.
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