National Intelligence Service (South Korea)The National Intelligence Service (NIS; Korean: 국가정보원, 국정원) is the chief intelligence agency of South Korea. The agency was officially established in 1961 as the Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA; Korean: 중앙정보부; Hanja: 中央情報部; RR: Jungangjeongbobu; MR: Chungangjŏngbobu), during the rule of general Park Chung Hee's military Supreme Council for National Reconstruction, which displaced the Second Republic of Korea.
North Korea and weapons of mass destructionNorth Korea has the world's smallest stockpile of nuclear weapons, with an estimated 60 warheads and production of fissile material for six to seven warheads per year. North Korea is the tenth country to develop and most recent to openly testnuclear weapons. North Korea is also believed to have one of the world's largest chemical weapons stockpiles.
Lee HyoriSouth Korean singer (born 1979)Lee Hyori (Korean: 이효리; born May 10, 1979) is a South Korean singer and television personality. She debuted as a member of group Fin.K.L in 1998, which became one of the most popular girl groups in South Korea during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Aside from Fin.K.L, she has also participated in several project groups, including the Refund Sisters and SSAK3 in 2020. Lee made her solo debut in August 2003 with the release of Stylish....
Kim Jong IlKim Jong Il (16 February 1941 or 1942 – 17 December 2011) was a North Korean politician and dictator who was the second supreme leader of North Korea from the death of his father Kim Il Sung in 1994 until his own death in 2011. Posthumously, Kim Jong Il was declared an eternal leader of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK). Kim was born in 1941 in the far eastern region of the Soviet Union and moved to Pyongyang in 1945 following the end of Japanese rule.
Hwang Jung-minSouth Korean actor (born 1970)Hwang Jung-min (Korean: 황정민; born September 1, 1970) is a South Korean actor. One of the highest-grossing actors in South Korea, Hwang is the second actor to join the "100 Million Viewer Club" in Chungmuro. He began his career in musical theatre and first established himself as a leading man in the romantic drama You Are My Sunshine (2005).
Korean languageLanguage spoken in KoreaKorean is a Koreanic language native to Korea, which makes up the majority of the language's 81 million speakers. It is the official language of both North Korea and South Korea. In the south, the language is known as Hangugeo (South Korean: 한국어), and in the north, it is known as Chosŏnŏ (North Korean: 조선어). Since the turn of the 21st century, Korean popular culture has spread around the world through globalization and cultural exports.
Revised Romanization of KoreanRevised Romanization of Korean (RR; Korean: 국어의 로마자 표기법) is the official Korean language romanization system in South Korea. It was developed by the National Academy of the Korean Language from 1995 and was released to the public on 7 July 2000 by South Korea's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in Proclamation No. 2000-8. The main purpose of RR is to romanize proper nouns such as place names, personal names, and business names.
Yoon Jong-binYoon Jong-bin (Korean: 윤종빈; born December 20, 1979) is a South Korean film director. He is best known for directing the feature films Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time (2012), Kundo: Age of the Rampant (2014), and The Spy Gone North (2018). Yoon also expanded into television, directing the series Narco-Saints (2022) and Nine Puzzles (2025).
National Intelligence Agency (North Korea)The National Intelligence Agency (Korean: 국가정보국), formerly known as the Ministry of State Security (국가보위성), is the secret police agency of North Korea. It is an autonomous agency of the North Korean government reporting directly to the Supreme Leader. The agency is reputed to be one of the most brutal secret police forces in the world, and it has been involved in numerous human rights abuses.
Lee Sung-min (actor)South Korean actor (born 1968)Lee Sung-min (Korean: 이성민; born December 4, 1968) is a South Korean actor. He first gained recognition for his supporting roles in television and film. He is best known for his performances in the series Golden Time (2012), Misaeng: Incomplete Life (2014), and Reborn Rich (2022), winning Best Actor at the Baeksang Arts Awards for the latter two works.
Cho Jin-woongCho Jin-woong (Korean: 조진웅; born March 3, 1976), born Cho Won-jun (조원준), is a retired South Korean actor. He gained early recognition for his supporting roles in the films Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time (2012), The Admiral: Roaring Currents (2014), and Assassination (2015).
Ju Ji-hoonSouth Korean actor and model (born 1982)Ju Ji-hoon (Korean: 주지훈; born May 16, 1982) is a South Korean actor and model. He first gained international recognition with his leading role in the television series Princess Hours (2006) and has achieved further prominence with the series Five Fingers (2013), Mask (2015), Kingdom (2019–2020), Hyena (2020), and The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call (2025), for which he won Best Actor at the 61st Baeksang Arts Awards.
Spy filmThe spy film, also known as the spy thriller, is a genre of film that deals with the subject of fictional espionage, either in a realistic way (such as the adaptations of John le Carré) or as a basis for fantasy (such as many James Bond films). Many novels in the spy fiction genre have been adapted as films, including works by John Buchan, le Carré, Ian Fleming (Bond) and Len Deighton.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.