Comments on: Korean FTA negotiators: Look out for CIA bugs disguised as bugs

By: kushibo

kushibo — Sun, 09 Apr 2006 23:22:33 +0000

The fact of the matter is that spying is part of the “Great Game” and I was briefed in private about it and it was not put on the front page of the USA Today unlike Korea where it is splashed across the pages of the Chosun.

The Chosun Ilbo has to, on occasion, not look like it’s too pro-American, sort of like the NYT demonstrating that it’s not too pro-Clinton or anti-Bush.

And the article read more like a cutesy, “gee whiz” kind of piece with a general OPSEC message rather than an anti-American screed. Note the end paragraph:

An official with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said the workshop had been organized not because it was concluded that U.S. negotiators will bug their Korean counterparts but to instill security awareness among delegates.

Anyway, I don’t think the Korean side has to worry about the American side bugging their conversations because, as everyone knows, foreigners can’t speak Korean.

By: GI Korea

GI Korea — Sun, 09 Apr 2006 22:32:47 +0000

Korean military exchange students among other nationalities in the US are well known for trying to get classified information from other students. Before attending a particular school I was selected for the US soldiers were given a OPSEC briefing from a MI captain about the exchange students trying to gain classified info particularly Koreans, Japanese, Arab countries, and Israelis.

Sure enough once the class began the exchange students very cleverly tried to get information from us just as the MI guy had briefed us. No hard feelings about it, they were doing their job and I was doing mine.

The Korean media is about sensationalism and not news.

By: usinkorea

usinkorea — Sun, 09 Apr 2006 21:58:04 +0000

The bug bugs are real. I’ve seen stuff about them. I think it was the Japanese and their craze for robotics that started the idea of mimicing household insects and their movements to use them to navigate what are basically the same kind of structures and record what they saw or heard. I’ve seen the dragonfly bug demonstrated on TV.

As for who is going to reap the bulk of benefits from the FTA, the two first comments assume something I don’t — 1. that a deal with will be made and 2. that it will be implemented. I give both a very long shot of coming about in an election year and a presidential election year following that.

I still give it a 25% chance Roh and crew set up the FTA talks so the non-lame duck “progressives” can beat the heck out of him and the conservatives with it to energize their base over the long term. FTA negociations will go on for many months. There will be frequent leaks. Which means there will be frequent rantings in the street and press. And you will get big time influencial people (like with the screen quota) out promoting anti-FTA. In such an environment, I wonder how much of what goes on in the negociations really matters?

South Korea has shown a habit of negociating trade issues then balking at implementation when having to do so — for fear of the society that is anti-free trade - unless they are talking about Korean exports.

China and Chile know what I’m talking about….

By: snow

snow — Sun, 09 Apr 2006 17:06:47 +0000

It’s certainly a good idea to use intelligence to the max, even against friendly countries, but I wouldn’t be too worried about the Koreans getting a raw deal with the FTA. Koreans are very tough negotiators and I think the US will be lucky if they get the ‘better’ of the deal. Paranoia aside, I think the Koreans will be tough as nails in these negotiations. It’s the Americans that should be worried about the kind of deal they’ll be getting.

By: Mingi

Mingi — Sun, 09 Apr 2006 16:26:06 +0000

According to an article not too long ago published in an intelligence journal (I think it was Intelligence & National Security), South Korea is one of the countries most actively undertaking espionage against the US, along with America’s other friends like Japan and Britain. And I certainly wouldn’t be surprised if the US does the same against S. Korea. As Rob said, it’s “just the nature of the business.”