( CNN ) The attack on Mark Lippert , the U.S. ambassador to South Korea , allegedly by a knife-wielding Korean progressive activist at a breakfast meeting in Seoul , was a rare and shocking reminder of the ongoing conflict that continues to divide the Korean Peninsula . Despite the ever-present backdrop of inter-Korean tensions , security in downtown Seoul is typically quite relaxed . But on Thursday morning local time , the alleged assailant , who has been tied to Korean nationalist and anti-U.S. protests , reportedly shouted his opposition to annual U.S.-South Korean joint military exercises and called for Korean reunification as he cut the ambassador on the face and hand with a 10-inch knife . This breakfast meeting with Lippert was taking place at a building directly across the street from the U.S. Embassy in Seoul . And the scene was probably not too different from a similar breakfast meeting I attended with the ambassador at a downtown hotel only a week before the attack . Lippert moved freely without a security detail or security screenings at the entrance to the venue , and was accompanied by only one or two embassy staff . Indeed , even since 9/11 , it is relatively easy to enter most large buildings in downtown Seoul , and security procedures have been generally perfunctory . In part this is because direct confrontations between South Korean citizens and U.S. government representatives in South Korea have been rare , and violent political attacks are unusual . True , there have been periodic group protests against the U.S. military presence in South Korea or against U.S. policy . But these protests have generally been conducted peacefully , a far cry from the environment of the 1980s , when pro-democracy protesters against a then-authoritarian South Korean government attacked and burned U.S. government facilities . Yet although downtown Seoul has been relatively safe and public security has often been lax , violent attacks on public figures in South Korea are in fact not unprecedented . The attack on Lippert brings to mind a May 2006 attack by a knife-wielding assailant on Park Geun-hye , South Korea 's current President , while she was campaigning in local elections in Daejeon . ( Her calm demeanor despite receiving a facial laceration contributed to her reputation as a politician and future President who is cool in the midst of a crisis . ) The attack on Park was n't the only time the dangers inherent in South Korea 's lax security environment have been exposed : Back in 2008 , a lone arsonist burned to the ground Seoul 's unguarded Namdaemun , or South Gate , a South Korean cultural treasure . And of course , there is the backdrop of the ongoing inter-Korean confrontation , which plays out within Korean democracy in the form of a bitter confrontation between progressive and conservative factions . There is speculation that some members of South Korea 's progressive movement have ties with North Korea , and some of them have allegedly been somewhat willing to foment violence to stir up conflict within South Korean society . Most recently , some members of South Korea 's left-leaning United Progressive Party , which had won seats in South Korea 's National Assembly , were disbarred and convicted of plotting a violent insurrection , leading to the dissolution of the party itself . And while this hard-core group represents a fringe element within South Korean society , it still remains active in part due to North Korean ideological and financial support . All this said , the overwhelming initial Korean public response to the attack on Lippert has been one of outrage , condemnation and sympathy . Indeed , far from revealing gaps in the U.S.-South Korea alliance or fomenting discord over whether joint military exercises should move forward , the incident is likely to strengthen South Korean feelings of support for the alliance with the United States . Still , the incident also serves as a reminder that even in the most seemingly safe and pro-American environments around the world , there is a risk that some zealous critics of U.S. policy may resort to violence against official U.S. representatives overseas . And that 's especially so in regions such as the Korean Peninsula , where longstanding tensions still cast a shadow over security considerations .
Scott Snyder , U.S. ambassador to South Korea , was attacked in Seoul . Mark Lippert : Attacks on public figures in South Korea not unprecedented .