KF-21 Technology Leak Attempt Raises Concerns Over Diplomatic Tensions – Part 1

Includes U.S. “Export Approval (E/L)” related contents
Hurriedly reported the Defense Security Cooperation Agency
Concern of bad influence on joint development/export with Indonesia
Intention to block the re-emergence of creating a defense information warfare

An Indonesian technician working for Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) was caught trying to leak internal documents related to the Korean supersonic fighter jet KF-21 ‘Boramae.’ While no core technology leaks have been confirmed yet, it is known that the individual attempted to extract a substantial amount of data.

According to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration and other sources, the Indonesian researcher of a state enterprise, Mr. A, who was involved in the development of the KF-21, was caught on the 17th of last month trying to leave the KAI headquarters in Sacheon, Gyeongsangnam-do with multiple unauthorized portable storage devices (USBs) containing a large amount of data, including the development process.

KAI official said, “The Indonesian technician was caught at the checkpoint while leaving the company,” and “We have informed the National Intelligence Service, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, and the Defense Counterintelligence Command. The investigation is ongoing, but there are no signs of leakage of core technologies and state secrets.”

A joint investigation team of the National Intelligence Service, the Defense Counterintelligence Command, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, and others is verifying the information they tried to leak. The Indonesian technician is currently banned from leaving the country.

Concerns of Diplomatic Issues Due to the Circumstances of Leaked U.S. Approved Data

A Defense Acquisition Program Administration official said, “We are currently investigating the circumstances of the technology leak by the KF-21 Indonesian personnel (technician) in conjunction with the National Intelligence Service and other related agencies,” and “We will have to wait for the investigation results to know the details.”

However, it is known that the USB memory data caught this time includes diplomatically sensitive matters related to the development of the KF-21. It was reported that the content related to the “Export Approval (E/L)” of the U.S. government was also included. There are concerns that it could potentially lead to diplomatic issues between South Korea and the U.S.

The reason for the controversy over one of the 49 types of data stored in the USB memory is that the development of the KF-21 applied technologies from Lockheed Martin, a U.S. defense company, which received export approval from the U.S. Therefore if our government wants to share this with the Indonesian government, it must receive separate export approval from the U.S., and such data could have been leaked. Even including this data in the caught USB memory can be a reason for the U.S. government to protest against us.

The government’s restraint in overreacting is noteworthy.

A KAI official said, “So far, we have not found any data that violates the Defense Industry Technology Protection Act or military secrets,” and “We believe most of the data is general,” drawing a line on the controversy’s expansion.

A government source also answered, “It seems that there is no strategic technology in the data that the Indonesian technicians tried to leak,” and “We are analyzing the content to see if there are any serious data.”

The government’s cautious response to the expansion of the technology leak controversy seems to be due to concerns that this incident could not only lead to diplomatic problems but also cause disruptions in the future fighter jet development schedule and exports.

There is enough room for this incident to lead to diplomatic issues between South Korea and the U.S. The data caught covers export-approved technology and contains related details. Notably, our government hurriedly reported this to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency under the U.S. Department of State on the 30th of last month. It was judged that the U.S. government could raise issues without being informed.

Part 2…