Key facts
- South Korea's Defense Counterintelligence Command will be dismantled.
- The command is suspected of involvement in a failed martial law bid by former President Yoon Suk Yeol in December 2024.
- A new Defense Counterintelligence Headquarters will be created under the defense ministry.
- Core functions like anti-espionage and cybersecurity will be transferred to the new headquarters.
- Personnel vetting and background check functions will be abolished.
- A separate agency, the Agency for Defense Security Support, will handle military security inspections.
SEOUL, June 10 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's Defense Counterintelligence Command is slated for dissolution, 49 years after its establishment, due to its alleged role in a failed martial law bid by former President Yoon Suk Yeol in December 2024. The Ministry of National Defense announced the overhaul plan, which aims to curb the command's perceived unchecked authority.