ISTANBUL

A Wednesday media report alleged links between Taiwan and last year’s failed martial law attempt by South Korea's then-president, triggering protests by Taipei, according to Focus Taiwan.

Seoul-based daily the Hankyoreh claimed a top South Korean intelligence official sought Taiwan's support for last December’s martial law bid by President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was later ousted.

The report cited an anonymous military source which claimed that then-intelligence commander Moon Sang-ho visited Taiwan last November to meet with Taiwanese officials days before martial law was declared.

The undisclosed source said that Moon, now under arrest for his alleged role in Yoon’s martial law bid, visited Taipei to ask for support for the controversial attempt, which plunged South Korea into political disarray.

There has been no official confirmation from South Korea’s side about the newspaper’s claims.

The report came amid ongoing investigation by South Korean prosecutors into the involvement of military and intelligence personnel allegedly linked to the martial law bid.

In response to the report, Taiwan Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo said in a statement that the report was "fabrication with obvious malicious intent."

Kuo stressed that normal security exchanges between Taiwan and its partners had been ongoing for years, focusing on regional security instead of the internal affairs of any nation.

Taiwan does “not interfere in or comment on the internal affairs of other countries,” Kuo added, noting that Taipei has demanded retraction of the report.