S. Korean president names new ambassadors to China, U.S., Japan

South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday named new ambassadors to China, the United States and Japan.

Noh Young-min, a former three-term lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Party, was tapped as the first South Korean ambassador to China under the Moon Jae-in government, according to the presidential Blue House.

Noh served as chief of staff for Moon in the 2012 presidential election, in which Moon was defeated by a whisker by his predecessor Park Geun-hye who was impeached and stood trial for corruption charges.

Moon won a landslide victory in the May 9 presidential by-election, caused by his predecessor's impeachment.

Meanwhile, President Moon named Cho Yoon-je, an honorary professor of international studies at Sogang University in Seoul, as new ambassador to the United States.

Cho was a key adviser for Moon's election camp earlier this year, and was sent as a special envoy to Europe after the president took office on May 10.

Lee Su-hoon, an international relations professor at Kyungnam University, was named as new ambassador to Japan.

Lee led the diplomatic and security division for Moon's transition team after Moon's inauguration.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)