Ex-defense chief appointed as top envoy to Australia

Then Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup, right, shakes hands with his Australian counterpart, Richard Marles, in Seoul in this June 12, 2022 file photo provided by the Ministry of National Defense. Yonhap

Former Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup has been appointed as Korea's new ambassador to Australia, the foreign ministry said Monday.

Lee served as the first defense chief under the government of President Yoon Suk Yeol from May 2022 to October 2023. Before that, he was the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 2017-18.

Lee is known for his expertise in defense policy and planning. He retired as lieutenant general of the Army in February 2019.

The ministry also announced that Kim Pan-kyu, former vice chief of the Navy from 2016-18, will head the Korean mission as the top envoy in Nigeria.

Kim served as the commander of the Navy's First Fleet in 2013 and retired as vice admiral in 2019. (Yonhap)