Seoul:The National Intelligence Service (NIS) was excluded from a June trilateral meeting with the United States and Japan focused on North Korean cyber threats, as acknowledged by the agency on Thursday.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the exclusion of the NIS from the fifth meeting of the Trilateral Diplomatic Working Group was reported by a local newspaper to have been at the request of the U.S. side. The NIS commented that there had been a misunderstanding several months ago, which has since been resolved.

The agency emphasized that misunderstandings between nations can occur due to differing national interests but stressed the importance of resolving such issues promptly. The NIS affirmed there is no current misunderstanding between intelligence authorities of South Korea and the United States, highlighting ongoing close cooperation on security matters, including cyber and North Korea-related issues.

The Trilateral Diplomatic Working Group had its first meeting in December 2023, following a summit between the leaders of the involved nations at Camp David, Maryland, in August of the same year. This summit aimed at enhancing security cooperation among the three countries. The June meeting, which was the first to exclude the NIS, included over 60 participants from various ministries and agencies to discuss assessments of North Korea's cyber activities and strategies to counter these threats.

The U.S. request for NIS's exclusion is believed to be linked to remarks made by Unification Minister Chung Dong-young during a parliamentary session in March. Chung claimed that North Korea operates a third uranium enrichment facility in Kusong, in addition to those in Yongbyon and Kangson, though he stated this information was already public knowledge.