South Korea's ex-spy chief questioned over failed martial law bid

Cho Tae-yong, a former director of South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS), appeared before a special counsel team on Monday in connection with allegations tied to former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s failed 2024 attempt to impose martial law, News.Az reports, citing Yonhap.

Cho is accused of being involved in an insurrection-related case by allegedly trying to contact U.S. intelligence agencies following Yoon’s declaration of martial law on December 3, 2024, in order to convey a message justifying the emergency decree.

According to the special counsel team, the NIS reportedly received a document from the Presidential Office of National Security one day after the declaration, along with a request to explain the background of Yoon’s decision to friendly foreign governments.

Investigators suspect that NIS officials subsequently summoned a Central Intelligence Agency officer from the United States to explain the emergency measure, allegedly acting on instructions from Cho.

Separately, a Seoul district court last month sentenced Cho to 18 months in prison after finding him guilty of perjury for falsely testifying before the Constitutional Court that he had not received any martial law-related documents from Yoon.

Former President Yoon Suk Yeol was sentenced to life imprisonment in February for leading an insurrection through the failed martial law attempt, which lasted only several hours before being overturned by a National Assembly vote.

News.Az 

By Nijat Babayev