South Korea's Unification Minister Chung Dong-young expressed regret over allegations that his reference to North Korea's Kusong region as a nuclear facility site constituted an information leak. He made the remark during a parliamentary session last month to explain policy. The United States has complained and halted sharing satellite information on North Korea.
Unification Minister Chung Dong-young told reporters on April 20 that his reference to North Korea's Kusong region as a uranium enrichment site was part of a policy explanation to highlight the seriousness of the nuclear issue. "I only (referred to Kusong) as part of a policy explanation... Framing it as an information leak is very regrettable," he said.
The United States has reportedly complained, believing the information came from intelligence shared by Washington, and has ceased sharing satellite data on North Korea with Seoul. The unification ministry contended the remarks were based on "open information," such as expert reports and local media articles. Chung noted he mentioned Kusong during his confirmation hearing last year and suspected a "hidden motive" for raising the issue after nine months.
In a blog post, Chung called the leak claim "absurd," stating he had never received intelligence briefings on nuclear facilities since taking office. He accused some of falsely "spreading a scenario of a crisis in South Korea-U.S. relations" and hoped for resolution through "smooth communications."
President Lee Jae Myung wrote on X that the Kusong facility was "widely known worldwide through various academic papers and media reports" before Chung's remarks, deeming leak claims unfounded. Defense Ministry spokesperson Chung Binna told Yonhap News Agency there are no issues in South Korea-U.S. cooperation on North Korea information or military readiness against North Korea.
