An Archive-Based Analysis of the East-Berlin Affair (June 1967 to 1970) - Political and Diplomatic Relations between South Korea and West Germany -

This paper discusses the so-called East-Berlin Affair in the late 1960s which is considered the single most important political and diplomatic affair between South Korea and West Germany. In this research we aim to present an overview of the related archival materials available at the political archives of the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Berlin. h e German documents from the political archives reveal that South Korean nationals suspected of espionage activities against South Korea were forced to leave for Seoul suddenly and that the intelligence officials from South Korea were deeply involved in the German territory for this unlawful operation. The West German government became very upset with this diplomatic affair. Korean government eventually released all the accused who were later found guilty of espionage against South Korea. However, we notice some differences in diplomatic strategies between the two countries for solving the case at issue.