Yonhap News Summary

The Defense Ministry launched a new Counterintelligence Agency on Monday, aimed at countering espionage and terror threats from North Korea and beyond. This move is part of a sweeping overhaul of the ministry, which is replacing the former Defense Counterintelligence Command (DCC), which was criticized for its political influence.

The new agency is one of three new bodies being established under the reform plan. Separately, South Korea and the U.S. launched a joint underwater survey off the eastern coast to locate wreckage from U.S. aircraft that went down during the Korean War, which is scheduled to run through August 28. Meanwhile, the opposition People Power Party (PPP) called on President Lee Jae Myung to veto a bill that would abolish the prosecution's direct investigative powers, arguing that the bill would benefit criminals and undermine the rule of law.

Lastly, data showed that the number of first-time exporters in South Korea rose nearly 4 percent in 2025, with a total of 19,746 businesses registering for the first time.

Brief written by urgent.news from Yonhap News's own syndicated text. Machine-written — read the original for the full account.