2d Shuffle Sweeps Out 21 of 41 Vice Ministers

President Kim Dae-jung replaced 21 vice minister-level officials among 41 on Sunday, including those at the ministries of unification, foreign affairs and trade and defense, completing the formation of a new foreign affairs and security team.

Mr. Kim promoted Kim Hyung-ki, chief of the policy planning bureau at the Ministry of Unification as vice minister; appointed Choi Sung-hong, ambassador to Britain, as vice foreign minister; and replaced the vice defense minister with Kwon Young-ho, head of the procurement bureau.

The replacement of vice ministers in the three ministries following the March 26 cabinet shakeup marks a new line-up in the government's diplomatic and security team characterized by a functional support to complement the newly-appointed ministers.

"It is a reflection of President Kim Dae-jung's desire to consolidate cooperation with neighboring countries and the United States and in view of National Defense Commission Chairman Kim Jong-il's Seoul visit," a government official said.

Kim Hyung-ki is regarded as one of the few North Korea policy experts who can draw a big picture of inter-Korean relations. From the inception of the present administration, he has worked closely with Unification Minister Lim Dong-won, and in his new capacity he will be in charge of advance fine-tuning of issues to be discussed at the standing committee of the National Security Council, a ministerial-level organization within the foreign affairs team.

Mr. Choi, who has served as director-general of the European Affairs Bureau, will oversee affairs beyond the reach of Foreign Minister Han Seung-soo, who is to concentrate on U.S. relations. Political analysts believe Mr. Kwon's appointment is related to the procurement of new weapons worth 10 trillion won ($750 million), including the F-X next generation jet fighters next year.

In another appointment, Kim Song-ja, chairwoman of the Seoul provincial labor committee, was selected as vice labor minister, becoming the first female vice minister in Korea.

by Kim Jin-kook