The Justice Department has agreed to pause the criminal case against former CIA analyst Sue Mi Terry, a notable development in a closely watched foreign-influence prosecution that had raised difficult questions about lobbying, policy advocacy, and national security relationships. Terry had been accused of acting as an unregistered foreign agent for South Korea, but prosecutors are now putting the case on hold and may ultimately dismiss it.

The matter is pending in the Southern District of New York as USA v. TERRY, and the government’s retreat is significant on several levels.