(ATTN: ADDS paras 4-5 with defense chief's remarks)

By Kim Seung-yeon

SEOUL, Aug. 3 (Yonhap) -- The defense ministry on Monday launched a new counterintelligence unit tasked with countering espionage and terror threats from North Korea and elsewhere, as part of a sweeping overhaul aimed at replacing a former unit long dogged by criticism over its political influence.

The new defense counterintelligence agency is one of three new bodies being established under the reform plan, after the ministry decided to disperse and transfer the core functions of the Defense Counterintelligence Command (DCC) to new and existing agencies.

The ministry unveiled the reform plans in early June to dismantle the DCC, marking the command's dissolution 49 years after its establishment.

"What we are breaking away from today is the dark past of the counterintelligence agency," Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back said during a launch ceremony, referring to how the command was often blamed for political interference under the past administrations.

Ahn said that the new counterintelligence headquarters will serve as a specialized organization "solely dedicated to its original missions," calling on agency officials to work for the public.

The new counterintelligence unit will "proactively tackle future security threats," by working with domestic and foreign partner agencies to combat increasingly covert intelligence activities and terrorist threats from North Korea and other countries, the ministry said in a release.

It will also focus on preventing military secret leaks in the defense industry, while seeking to provide security support for other strategic areas, such as maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) operations being pursued in cooperation with the U.S. Navy.

Also a major task will be protecting advanced technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and satellite systems against potential cyberthreats, the ministry added.

A launch ceremony was held at the former headquarters in Gwacheon, just south of Seoul, attended by Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back and other military officials.

A new security support unit was also launched within the ministry on the same day. It will mainly oversee internal military security, including security audits for corps-level units or larger formations and investigation into security breaches, the ministry said.

The DCC has often been criticized for wielding excessive powers through its unique intelligence-gathering roles and has undergone a series of reform efforts under previous administrations.

Its involvement in former President Yoon Suk Yeol's failed martial law imposition on Dec. 3, 2024, had reignited calls for reform.

The reform plans also call for creating a separate investigative unit to handle crimes threatening national security, such as espionage, treason and cybersecurity threats.

elly@yna.co.kr

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