S. Korea appoints 15 new ambassadors, 5 consuls general

SEOUL, Aug. 29 (Yonhap) -- South Korea appointed a former ambassador for international security affairs, Nam Joo-hong, as its new envoy to Canada in a routine diplomatic reorganization that also affected 14 other countries and replaced five consuls general, the foreign ministry said.
Cho Tae-yong, who had served as chief of protocol at the ministry, was named ambassador to Australia and Ambassador for International Relations Kim Il-soo was appointed to head the embassy in Israel, the ministry said in a statement.
Park Yong-kyu, former ambassador to the Slovak Republic, was appointed as ambassador to New Zealand; Kim Byoung-ki, former presidential secretary for defense, will be the new ambassador to Lebanon; and Kim Kwang-kuen, former ambassador to Panama, was named ambassador to Serbia, it said.
The former consul general to San Francisco, Chung Sang-ki, was appointed as South Korea's representative to Taiwan. Like most nations, South Korea recognizes China officially over Taiwan, but keeps close trade and civil ties with Taipei.
The other new ambassadors include those to Turkey, the Netherlands, Hungary, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Brunei, Cameroon, Ethiopia and Bolivia, according to the statement.
The announcement came after the host nations gave diplomatic consent to the proposed appointments.
Monday's reshuffle also saw the replacement of five consuls general in Atlanta of the United States, Ho Chi Minh of Vietnam, Toronto of Canada, Xian of China and Yokohama of Japan, according to the statement.
kdh@yna.co.kr