| Translate This News In |
|---|
North Korea has named veteran diplomat Choe Son-hui as the country’s first female foreign minister, according to state media on Saturday, as Pyongyang continues to conduct sanctions-busting nuclear tests while ignoring US calls for dialogue.
Choe, who formerly served as North Korea’s vice foreign minister, was appointed to run the foreign ministry at a ruling party meeting presided over by Kim Jong Un, according to state media KCNA.
Ri Son Gwon, a tough former military official who previously led discussions with the South, has been replaced.
Choe, a professional diplomat with strong English, was Kim’s close assistant during nuclear talks with the US and accompanied him to summits with then-US President Donald Trump.
On the night the two leaders’ summit in Hanoi in February 2019 collapsed without a deal, she held a rare question-and-answer session with media, blaming the failure on Washington.
“I believe the US has squandered a good opportunity by rejecting our suggestions,” she stated.
Diplomacy between Pyongyang and Washington has now frozen, with the Kim dictatorship ignoring numerous US invitations to resume talks in recent months.
In the meantime, the nuclear-armed North has conducted a flurry of sanctions-busting weapons tests this year, including the first full-range intercontinental ballistic missile test since 2017.
Kim’s dictatorship is also planning to conduct its seventh nuclear test, according to US and South Korean officials, a move that will be met with a “quick and forceful” response, according to Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman.
