The U.S. Forces in South Korea has denied an online media report that U.S. and South Korean special forces have infiltrated North Korea to gather intelligence about underground military installations there.

A USFK spokesman on Tuesday strongly denied The Diplomat’s report, which quoted Army Brigadier General Neil Tolley, commander of U.S. special forces in South Korea, whose comments were reportedly made during a conference held in Florida last week.

The spokesman said that the report was misleading and the commander’s remarks were distorted.

The USFK spokesman stressed that the special forces' primary purpose is special reconnaissance, but that U.S. and South Korean special forces have never sent their commandos into the North to conduct such missions.

The Diplomat quoted Tolley as saying that U.S. and South Korean commandos are sent to the North to gather intelligence about underground tunnels that cannot be detected by satellites.