South Korean authorities have arrested two Chinese nationals, both former members of the People's Liberation Army, on suspicion of conducting military espionage operations targeting joint U.S.-South Korean defense activities.
One suspect, a man in his 60s, repeatedly entered South Korea on tourist visas beginning in January 2024 and allegedly intercepted radio communications between U.S. and South Korean fighter jets and air traffic controllers from a hotel near Gunsan air base. The second suspect, a 45-year-old ethnic Korean with Chinese citizenship, is accused of recruiting a South Korean woman who worked at the U.S. military's Camp Humphreys base to obtain classified information about joint military exercises.
Both men face charges of "benefiting the enemy" under South Korean law, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. The arrests come as the United States, which maintains approximately 28,500 troops in South Korea, prepares to launch its next joint military exercise with Seoul next week.