President Park Geun Hye today selected Minister of National
Defense Kim Kwan Jin to head the so-called “control tower” of South Korea’s defense structure, the Blue House Office of National Security. A former head of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff, Han Min Koo is set to replace Kim at the Ministry of
National Security pending parliamentary approval.
Blue House spokesperson Min Kyung Wook revealed the news today, telling journalists, “President Park appointed the new national
security adviser and the defense minister to avoid a leadership vacuum in
national security and to strengthen national security amid North Korea’s consistent
provocations and threats that are endangering the safety of the people.”
The previous head of the Office of National Security, Kim
Jang Soo was fired last month for comments he made regarding the sinking of the Sewol, a
passenger ferry that went down off the southwest coast of South Korea in April
with the loss of more than 300 lives.
Kim Kwan Jin has been Minister of National Defense since
2010, when North Korea both sank the ROKS Cheonan off the coast of Baekryeong
Island and shelled Yeonpyeong Island with the loss of four lives, two of them
civilian. He is widely regarded as having handled defense issues well in the
position, and will hold both posts simultaneously until Han is confirmed by the National Assembly.
“As Minister of National Defense for four years [Kim] has been responsible for national defense, and has been involved in deciding national
security, foreign and unification policy as a member of both the National
Security Committee and Foreign and Defense Ministers Committee,” Min told reporters. “Against this
background, we anticipate that he will faithfully execute the duties of the
head of the Office of National Security.”
