How a Top Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission Into North Korea Fell Apart
How a Top Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission Into North Korea Fell Apart
The 2019 operation, greenlit by President Trump, sought a strategic edge. It left unarmed North Koreans dead.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/05/us/navy-seal-north-korea-trump-2019.html
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By Dave Philipps and Matthew Cole
Dave Philipps is a national correspondent for The New York Times, and Matthew Cole is a freelance journalist. Both have covered the military for more than 15 years.
Sept. 5, 2025
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The objective was to plant an electronic device that would let the United States intercept the communications of North Korea’s reclusive leader, Kim Jong-un, amid high-level nuclear talks with President Trump.
The mission had the potential to provide the United States with a stream of valuable intelligence. But it meant putting American commandos on North Korean soil — a move that, if detected, not only could sink negotiations but also could lead to a hostage crisis or an escalating conflict with a nuclear-armed foe.
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For the operation, the military chose SEAL Team 6’s Red Squadron — the same unit that killed Osama bin Laden. The SEALs rehearsed for months, aware that every move needed to be perfect. But when they reached what they thought was a deserted shore that night, wearing black wet suits and night-vision goggles, the mission swiftly unraveled.
A North Korean boat appeared out of the dark. Flashlights from the bow swept over the water. Fearing that they had been spotted, the SEALs opened fire. Within seconds, everyone on the North Korean boat was dead.
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Julian E. Barnes, Adam Entous and Eric Schmitt contributed reporting.
Dave Philipps writes about war, the military and veterans and covers The Pentagon.
In 2019, TACO made a personal approach to Kim, looking to make a nuclear agreement that had not been successfully made by past administrations. Talks collapsed, and North Korea’s nuclear program accelerated. It's been estimated that North Korea has roughly 50 nuclear weapons and missiles that can reach the West Coast. North Korea has expanded its nuclear program to deter what they feel is a U.S. threat.
This operation has never been publicly acknowledged by the United States or North Korea. TACO did not notify key members of Congress who oversee intelligence operations, before or after the mission. The lack of notification may have violated the law.
The white House has refused to comment
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