It has belatedly been revealed that the Donald Trump U.S. administration pressured a New York Times reporter to disclose confidential sources by issuing a subpoena over past reports regarding a failed U.S. Navy infiltration operation into North Korea.

According to The New York Times on the 1st (local time), the U.S. Department of Justice issued a subpoena in February requiring Matthew Cole, a freelance reporter for The New York Times, to appear before a federal grand jury.

This demand requires the disclosure of sources concerning a September report last year by The New York Times regarding a 2019 U.S. military operation against North Korea.

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents visited Cole's home in New York City to hand-deliver the subpoena issued by the federal prosecutor's office, but he was not home, and the subpoena was ultimately delivered to his attorney.

The newspaper condemned that law enforcement authorities are trying to unearth the sources of the report at the time by securing two years of Cole's reporting records.

Previously, Cole reported that in 2019, while President Donald Trump, who was then serving his first term, was engaged in denuclearization negotiations with North Korea, Navy SEALs infiltrated the North Korean coastline in a top-secret operation dubbed "wiretapping Kim Jong-un," but the mission failed after a boat carrying civilians appeared.

Cole reportedly interviewed about 20 sources for this report.

According to the report at the time, Red Squadron of SEAL Team 6, the most elite among U.S. Navy special forces, was deployed for the operation.

However, the moment some of the SEAL team members arrived on the coast, a vessel carrying North Korean civilians appeared in the dark sea. Fearing discovery, the special forces allegedly killed two to three of them before returning to a submarine, bringing the operation to an end in failure.

North Korea has not released any public stance regarding the U.S. operation for over 7 years.

Cole's camp and The New York Times strongly condemned the U.S. Department of Justice's latest move.

Cole's attorney stated through a statement, "Cole has dedicated his life to exposing misconduct in public office and informing the public about how the government operates. He will defend freedom of the press against the administration's bold attacks on journalists and keep his promise to his sources to the end."

Charlie Stadtlander, a spokesperson for The New York Times, pointed out, "This subpoena is an example of the government expanding its attacks targeting journalists, which should concern all Americans. The demand to disclose sources is another attack by the administration to block critical information that the public must know."

The New York Times is reportedly supporting the costs of Cole's legal defense.

While declining to comment on the specific investigation, the U.S. Department of Justice stated in a release, "We will use all available legal means to identify those who illegally leaked national security information."

The New York Times evaluated that this subpoena demonstrates the Trump administration's stance of pressuring journalists to reveal sources in order to hunt down government classified leaks.

The Trump administration has demanded journalists submit materials to identify sources for a Wall Street Journal (WSJ) article covering White House discussions regarding the Iran war.

It also issued subpoenas to a Washington Post (WP) reporter who reported on U.S. military operations in Venezuela.

It previously issued and later withdrew subpoenas to NYT reporters who wrote about security concerns regarding President Trump's new presidential aircraft (Air Force One).

(Photo provided by U.S. Department of Defense, Yonhap News)