Seoul: South Korea's spy chief today resigned over the leak of a confidential document reporting a conversation with his North Korean counterpart.

Kim Man-Bok, director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), held a press conference to apologise and announce his resignation. "I, as head of the country's top intelligence agency, take full responsibility, offer to resign and apologise to the people for causing trouble," he said in a statement.

The document reported a conversation between Kim and his North Korean counterpart Kim Yang-Gon in Pyongyang, one day before South Korea's December 19 presidential election.

It was leaked to local media after the NIS presented it at a private meeting with president-elect Lee Myung-Bak's transition team.

The NIS chief admitted having disclosed the report off the record to an unidentified senior local journalist in a bid to clear up groundless suspicions about his Pyongyang visit.

The office of incumbent President Roh Moo-Hyun described Kim's actions as "inappropriate" and indicated Roh will accept the resignation.

Some local media had got wind of his visit before the election and suggested he might have been trying somehow to sway the poll in the South. Kim has said he was only in the North one day before the vote, adding that the main purpose of his visit was to attend the unveiling of a monument marking last October's North-South summit.

Source : PTI