Lee nominates cabinet to tackle security, economy

President Lee Jae-myung on Monday nominated candidates for 11 ministerial posts, including the Ministry of Science and ICT, in his first cabinet announcement since taking office 19 days ago. Yoon Chang-ryul, former first vice minister at the Office for Government Policy Coordination, was tapped to lead the agency.

Lee named two sitting lawmakers to key national security posts: Rep. Chung Dong-young was nominated as Minister of Unification, and Rep. Ahn Gyu-baek as Minister of National Defense. Ahn is the first civilian nominee for defense chief since the May 16 military coup.

Kim Sung-hwan, Kang Sun-woo, and Jeon Jae-soo were nominated to lead the Ministries of Environment, Gender Equality and Family, and Oceans and Fisheries, respectively.

Five of the 11 nominees are current Democratic Party lawmakers, underscoring the president’s intent to respond swiftly to national security and economic challenges by relying on experienced legislators.

Cho Hyun, a former vice minister of foreign affairs under the Moon Jae-in administration, was tapped to head the Foreign Ministry amid urgent issues such as tariff negotiations with the United States and the Middle East conflict.

President Lee said he hoped for a swift confirmation process to ensure the cabinet could respond quickly to the crisis.

Some nominees came from outside the Democratic Party. Song Mi-ryung, appointed by former President Yoon Suk-yeol, was reappointed as Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Kwon Oh-eul, a former Grand National Party lawmaker, was named Minister of Patriots and Veterans Affairs.

“This is about offering opportunities based on merit, regardless of ideology,” said Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik. “We expect this to promote national unity.”

Bae Kyung-hoon, head of the LG AI Research Center, was nominated to lead the Ministry of Science and ICT. Han Seong-sook, former CEO of Naver, was tapped to head the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.

Kim Young-hoon, nominated for Minister of Employment and Labor, previously led the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions. If confirmed, he would be the first labor minister from the organization.

Having now named 12 ministerial-level officials, including 11 from 19 ministries, President Lee held his first meeting with senior advisors and began work on policies to curb rising oil prices and inflation.

“The situation in the Middle East is very urgent,” Lee said, directing ministries to establish emergency response systems. He added that the government should consider additional measures, including a possible supplementary budget, and urged close cooperation with the National Assembly.


Hoon-Sang Park tigermask@donga.com