A semiannual report released Monday by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) disclosed that an employee at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) was caught attempting to board a flight to South Korea with software related to nuclear reactors, resulting in the termination of his contract.
The case, which occurred sometime between October 2023 and March 2024, is under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Homeland Security Investigations.
The software is protected under U.S. export control regulations, which require prior government approval for the transfer of sensitive information.
Initial investigations apparently found that the employee, who was aware of this, had communicated with a foreign government.
Although the report did not specify the country, the employee's destination has been linked to South Korea's recent inclusion in the lowest tier of "other designated countries" on the list of sensitive countries.
Later in the day, the Foreign Ministry here explained that the U.S. clarified the inclusion, set to be effective from next month, was "not politically motivated, but based on security concerns within the DOE."
Once implemented as planned on April 15, it could not only complicate joint research and projects between the two countries, but also restrict South Korea's access to advanced technologies such as nuclear energy, artificial intelligence (AI), semiconductors, biotechnology and others.
To resolve the issue, Ahn Duk-geun, the minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, will head to Washington later this week to meet with his U.S. counterpart and ask to be removed from the list.
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