[Exclusive] Moon-era inter-Korean military pact needs to be restored: spy chief nominee

Lee Jong-seok, who was unification minister for late Democratic Party of Korea President Roh Moo-hyun, was nominated June 4 as the director of the National Intelligence Service. The Korea Herald database

South Korea's spy chief nominee Lee Jong-seok said he believes the now-suspended inter-Korean military pact, reached between former President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in 2018, should be restored.

According to his response to the National Assembly's questions submitted Wednesday, a day ahead of his confirmation hearing, Lee said that reinstating the pact, which was suspended by North Korea in 2023 and by the Yoon administration the next year, was "most desirable."

"It is my opinion that restoring the Sept. 19 military agreement is most desirable," he said, in a written response, accessed by The Korea Herald. "But if it is not possible to restore the agreement, I think it is necessary to take commensurate measures to reduce military tensions between the two Koreas."

Lee was also critical of Yoon's China policies.

Lee said the previous administration "did not adequately manage the relations between South Korea and China, viewing China only through the lens of ideology and causing unnecessary conflicts."

Lee said that when it comes to South Korea's relations with China, a key trade partner, the two countries "pursue areas of common interest."

But he added that when South Korea's "national interests are infringed upon," the country needed to "take measures based on principles."

Lee denied allegations, raised by some within the opposition People Power Party, of his having "pro-North Korea views."

"I absolutely cannot agree with the claims that I am pro-North Korea only because I have studied North Korea and the Korean Peninsula in depth," he said. "I believe that in order to achieve denuclearization and build a lasting peace in the Korean Peninsula, one must have a deep understanding of, and insight into North Korea and the surrounding region."

On North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's governing style, Lee said he took after his grandfather, Kim Il-sung.

"Kim Jong-un's governing style is more in line with Kim Il-sung's in that he favors more contact with the people, on-the-ground leadership, and public meetings," Lee said. "This is different from his father Kim Jong-il who preferred to rule behind closed doors and refrained from interacting with the public."

When asked about where he stands on the 2020 shooting murder of a South Korean government official by North Korean troops, Lee said he was "not aware of all the facts" as he was at the time a scholar at a policy institute.

"If I am appointed as the director of the National Intelligence Service, I will look into the matter," Lee said.

In 2022, the NIS filed a criminal complaint against its former director Park Jie-won, who is now a Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker, for allegedly destroying the spy agency's confidential materials related to the South Korean official's death. The criminal trial for Park and other high-level officials at the time is still underway.

Lee awaits a confirmation hearing by the National Assembly, slated for Thursday.