MI6 agent James Bond infiltrates a North Korean military base where Colonel Tan-Sun Moon is illegally trading weapons for African conflict diamonds. After Moon's assistant Zao discovers that Bond is a British agent via an unknown source, Moon attempts to kill Bond and a hovercraft chase ensues, ending with Moon's apparent death. Bond survives but is captured by North Korean soldiers and imprisoned by the Colonel's father, General Moon.
After fourteen months of captivity and torture, Bond is traded for Zao in a prisoner exchange. He is sedated and taken to meet M, who informs him that his status as a 00 Agent has been suspended under suspicion of having leaked information under duress. Bond is convinced that he has been set up by a double agent in the British government. After escaping MI6 custody, he discovers that he is in Hong Kong, where he learns from a Chinese agent that Zao is in Cuba.