North Korea has been inserting agents and recruiting South Korean spies since before the 1950-53 Korean War.  There is little doubt that there are North Korean spies in nearly all strata of Korean society.  Still, this has to be especially disturbing to South Koreans at a time when the ROK is trying to improve its ability to deal with North Korean military provocations.

South Korea’s military and intelligence agencies are probing into a two-star Army general accused of leaking classified military information to North Korea, officials said Friday.

The general, identified only as Kim, had allegedly handed over classified information related to military management and operations between 2005 and 2007 to a former South Korean intelligence agent recruited by North Korea, according to prosecutors and investigators at the Defense Security Command (DSC).

The investigation into general Kim is part of a wider investigation into a former South Korean spy who allegedly gave secrets to the North for money.

Last month, a female spy for North Korea was arrested in a case of sex-for-secrets.  She entered South Korea pretending to be a defector.  The case is similar to that of Won Jeong Hwa, who suduced military personnel and got them to hand over secrets.

A college lecturer was convicted of spying for North Korea last January.

One of the things that I have long suspected is that there are a lot of people in Korea, including figures in government, the media and academics, who do not want to see the regime in Pyongyang fall because the subsequent opening of the regime’s files would reveal their status as agents or dupes for the North Koreans.