Valentina Shvartsman - North Korea's pick of a new foreign minister may indicate a shift in the focus of its diplomacy from the United States to South Korea amid stalled denuclearization talks, with the newly-appointed top diplomat likely pursuing a more hawkish approache to the dialogue with Washington, experts told Sputnik
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th January, 2020) , Valentina Shvartsman - North Korea's pick of a new foreign minister may indicate a shift in the focus of its diplomacy from the United States to South Korea amid stalled denuclearization talks, with the newly-appointed top diplomat likely pursuing a more hawkish approache to the dialogue with Washington, experts told Sputnik.
On Sunday, South Korea's state-run Yonhap media outlet reported that North Korea had informed foreign embassies in Pyongyang about the appointment of Ri Son Gwon as the country's new foreign minister. The Russian Foreign Ministry later confirmed that it was informed about the replacement, but Pyongyang has yet to make an official announcement.
Ri, a former senior army official, used to head the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Country, which handles relations with South Korea, and led the North's delegation to recent talks with its neighbor.
However, new foreign minister's lack of diplomatic experience, other than engaging with South Korea, may make Pyongyang even more isolated on the international arena, Dr. Sangsoo Lee, a senior research fellow of the Institute for Security and Development Policy and head of the Stockholm Korea Center, told Sputnik.
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