Yoon appoints foreign, interior ministers

President Yoon Suk-yeol places his right hand on his chest to pay tribute to the national flag during the first Cabinet meeting of his administration at the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Thursday. Joint Press Corps

Chances for humanitarian aid to NK remain open

By Nam Hyun-woo

President Yoon Suk-yeol on Thursday appointed Foreign Affairs Minister Park Jin and Interior and Safety Minister Lee Sang-min, even though the ministers' confirmation reports were not adopted by the National Assembly amid objections from the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK).

The move is interpreted as Yoon's intention to meet the quorum for his first Cabinet meeting held later in the day.

A presidential aide told reporters on condition of anonymity that Yoon has approved the appointments of Park and Lee.

Unlike appointing the prime minister, a president does not need the Assembly's approval in naming ministers.

President Yoon Suk-yeol shakes hands with Foreign Affairs Minister Park Jin during the first Cabinet meeting of the Yoon administration at the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Thursday. Joint Press Corps

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Yoon pushed through the appointment of the two ministers in an attempt to meet the Cabinet quorum of 11 out of 20 members with appointees of his choosing. Before appointing the two ministers, Yoon had eight Cabinet members ― the president himself and seven ministers who had been appointed on the first day of his presidency. So he failed to meet quorum and thus had to invite ministers who had been appointed by his predecessor Moon Jae-in.

After the Cabinet meeting, Yoon appointed Lee Chang-yang to lead the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Lee Young to head the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. Unlike the foreign and interior ministers, the National Assembly adopted confirmation reports on the industry and startups ministers.

The DPK has been objecting to most of Yoon's minister nominations, adopting confirmation reports on only nine out of 18 minister nominees so far. Also, the party is maintaining its opposition on Prime Minister nominee Han Duck-soo.

Yoon's appointments of two ministers came amid tense inter-Korean relations following North Korea's test-firing of missiles.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un convenes the eighth politburo meeting in Pyongyang in this photo carried by the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Thursday. Captured from KCNA website

The presidential office dropped a hint that Seoul may provide humanitarian aid to North Korea, which acknowledged for the first time that the regime has reported a coronavirus case.

"To my knowledge, the president is thinking that humanitarian aid should be considered separately, and we will let you know when we have something to reveal," a key official at the presidential office said, when asked about Yoon's response to North Korea's COVID-19 report.

However, the office said later that the remark was about the Yoon administration's principle in North Korea policy, turning down anticipation that Seoul may send COVID-19 vaccines or treatments to Pyongyang in the near future.

The North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that North Korea held its 8th politburo meeting in Pyongyang, with leader Kim Jong-un in attendance, saying "a break was made on our emergency epidemic prevention front."

The report said it conducted analysis on "the specimen from persons with fever" on May 8 and it "coincided with the Omicron BA.2 sub-variant which is recently spreading worldwide rapidly."

The report is assumed to be the reclusive regime's distress call to the outside world for coronavirus vaccines or treatments. Watchers said this may be a chance for the two Koreas and the U.S. to resume talks, if U.S. President Joe Biden mentions humanitarian aid to the North during his visit to Seoul later this month, and the regime accepts this.

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