Ex-CIA analyst accused of working for South Korean intelligence

September 01, 2024

A former CIA analyst and noted East Asia expert has been indicted on criminal charges of acting as an agent of South Korea, whose intelligence officials allegedly rewarded her with luxury gifts and concealed payments made to a think tank.

Sue Mi Terry was charged with failing to register as a foreign agent and conspiring to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act, according to an indictment in the Southern District of New York that was made public Tuesday. The Council on Foreign Relations, where Terry is senior fellow for Korea studies, placed her on unpaid administrative leave, CFR spokesperson Iva Zorić said, adding that the think tank “will cooperate with any investigation” and takes the allegations “very seriously.”

Terry’s lawyer, Lee Wolosky, signaled that she will fight the charges. “These allegations are unfounded and distort the work of a scholar and news analyst known for her independence and years of service to the United States,” Wolosky said in a statement. “Dr. Terry has not held a security clearance for over a decade and her views on matters relating to the Korean peninsula have been consistent over many years. In fact, she was a harsh critic of the South Korean government during times this indictment alleges that she was acting on its behalf. Once the facts are made clear it will be evident the government made a significant mistake.”

Terry, 54, told FBI agents in a voluntary interview in June 2023 that she was a “source” for South Korea’s National Intelligence Service, or NIS, according to the indictment. The indictment also alleges that Terry admitted that she had “resigned in lieu of termination” from the CIA because of the agency’s concern over problematic contacts with Korean intelligence officers.

Years earlier, during a 2014 interview with the FBI, she was asked about contacts with South Korean intelligence officials and warned that they may try to approach again, including by dangling offers to secretly pay for conferences.

“Terry responded that she was glad to have contact with the FBI should such a situation arise,” according to the indictment.

But for years, prosecutors allege, Terry met with handlers from the NIS, who dined with her at luxury restaurants in New York and D.C. and bought her Louis Vuitton and Bottega Veneta handbags and a Dolce & Gabbana coat, the indictment says. Terry provided the intelligence officials with information and access to congressional staffers and high-ranking U.S. government officials.

Before working for the Council on Foreign Relations, Terry was a deputy national intelligence officer at the National Intelligence Council and director for Korea, Japan and Oceanic affairs at the National Security Council. She also previously worked as senior fellow for the Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and later worked as director of the Asia program at the Wilson Center. Terry has been an occasional op-ed contributor to The Washington Post’s website, and is the wife of Post columnist Max Boot.

Terry is a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in Seoul and raised in Virginia and Hawaii, according to the indictment.

Prosecutors said she caused a think tank — whose details in the indictment indicate that it is the Wilson Center — to accept $37,000 in funds that were “nominally issued” by the South Korean Embassy “but were in fact provided by” the NIS. Terry didn’t disclose the “true source” of the funding to the think tank, according to the indictment.

The Wilson Center said Terry joined the think tank “in October 2021 as director of the Korea Program, then served as director of the Asia Program until July 2023. The Wilson Center is not a target of the investigation and has cooperated fully with law enforcement authorities.”

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Zorić, the Council on Foreign Relations spokesperson, said the alleged activities predate Terry’s tenure at the think tank.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies declined to comment, citing “an ongoing federal criminal matter.”

Terry attended an hour-long private meeting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Korea policy experts and State Department staff in June 2022, according to the indictment. Her NIS handler picked her up from the event in a diplomatic vehicle and photographed Terry’s handwritten notes in the car, the indictment says.

The indictment also accuses Terry of inviting congressional staffers to a happy hour in D.C., which “allowed [South Korean] officials to identify, evaluate, and potentially recruit Congressional staff whom they otherwise would not have been able to access.” At the end of the event, an intelligence officer “paid the bill,” according to the indictment. While the happy hour was “nominally” hosted by the South Korean Embassy, it was actually funded by the NIS, according to the indictment.

Later, according to the indictment, Terry told the FBI that giving her handler access to the staffers was like “bringing the wolf in.”

In another instance, prosecutors allege, Terry received a call from a Korean Foreign Ministry official in March 2023. After the call, Terry texted the official, “So for me to write an op ed, I need the following information,” and provided questions about Korea-Japan relations.

The official provided answers to the questions the next day, according to the indictment. That afternoon, an opinion piece — which did not disclose Korean government involvement — ran on The Post’s website. Boot was a co-author of the piece.

“The article was broadly consistent with the responses” sent by the Korean official, according to the indictment. Terry later wrote in a text message to the official, “Hope you liked the article.” He later responded: “Thank you so much for your zeal and endeavors! Of course we do. Actually, Ambassador and National Security Advisor were so happy for your column.”

Boot has not been charged with a crime. He did not reply to a request for comment.

“The Washington Post is committed to publishing independent journalism and is reviewing the indictment. We do not have further comment,” said Kathy Baird, a Post spokeswoman.

The South Korean Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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