South Korean President Lee Myung-bak yesterday replaced his finance minister and North Korea policymaker, signaling a new drive to combat the economic crisis and an apparent refusal to yield to the North’s threats.
Kang Man-soo, who came in for severe media criticism for his handling of the economic downturn, will be replaced by Yoon Jeung-hyun, the president’s spokesman said.
Yoon is a former chief of the decision-making Financial Supervisory Committee and of the watchdog Financial Supervisory Service.
“The government expects his nomination and appointment will bring about confidence in the market that will help us get through this economic crisis,” the spokesman said.
South Korean Unification Minister Kim Ha-joong will be succeeded by Hyun In-taek, an academic who helped draft Lee’s policy towards Pyongyang, which links major economic aid to progress on denuclearization.
The policy has enraged the communist North, which has cut off dialogue and imposed tight border controls. The South’s armed forces are on top alert after the North’s military on Saturday threatened “all-out confrontation” with Seoul.
Lee’s office in a statement called Hyun “a reunification and security expert” well versed in North Korean affairs and national defense.
Analysts said Hyun’s appointment indicates the conservative president will maintain his firm policy towards Pyongyang, which contrasts with a decade-long “sunshine” engagement policy under Lee’s liberal predecessors.
“Hyun is a key architect of President Lee’s North Korea policy, which is denounced by Pyongyang as being confrontational,” said Park Kie-duck, a senior member of the Sejong Institute think-tank.
“Hyun’s appointment sends a signal that President Lee will hold on to his current principled policy towards North Korea consistently. There will be no quick attempts to engage the North,” Park said.
Lee, styling himself the “economy first” president, won power with a record victory margin. But after almost 11 months in office, his approval rating has slumped as the export-driven economy teeters closer to recession.
Kang was under fire for public utterances which critics said weakened market confidence and for alleged inconsistency. Initially, he encouraged a weaker won to promote exports, until the currency nosedived against the dollar and authorities were forced to try to prop it up.
The central bank’s official growth forecast for this year is 2 percent. The state-run Korea Development Institute sees a high possibility of the first recession in over a decade, as domestic demand and exports fall sharply.
Park said the president had long ignored demands to replace Kang, one of his closest confidants.
“But he could no longer stick it out politically,” Park said.
The president also replaced two ministerial-level officials — the chief of staff for the prime minister and the head of the newly created regulatory body, the Financial Services Commission (FSC).
Kwon Tae-shin, a career government administrator, will become the prime minister’s chief of staff. Chin Dong-soo, president of the state-run Export-Import Bank of Korea, is to be the new head of the FSC.
Super Typhoon Kong-rey is the largest cyclone to impact Taiwan in 27 years, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. Kong-rey’s radius of maximum wind (RMW) — the distance between the center of a cyclone and its band of strongest winds — has expanded to 320km, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張竣堯) said. The last time a typhoon of comparable strength with an RMW larger than 300km made landfall in Taiwan was Typhoon Herb in 1996, he said. Herb made landfall between Keelung and Suao (蘇澳) in Yilan County with an RMW of 350km, Chang said. The weather station in Alishan (阿里山) recorded 1.09m of
STORM’S PATH: Kong-Rey could be the first typhoon to make landfall in Taiwan in November since Gilda in 1967. Taitung-Green Island ferry services have been halted Tropical Storm Kong-rey is forecast to strengthen into a typhoon early today and could make landfall in Taitung County between late Thursday and early Friday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, Kong-Rey was 1,030km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), the nation’s southernmost point, and was moving west at 7kph. The tropical storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 101kph, with gusts of up to 126 kph, CWA data showed. After landing in Taitung, the eye of the storm is forecast to move into the Taiwan Strait through central Taiwan on Friday morning, the agency said. With the storm moving
NO WORK, CLASS: President William Lai urged people in the eastern, southern and northern parts of the country to be on alert, with Typhoon Kong-rey approaching Typhoon Kong-rey is expected to make landfall on Taiwan’s east coast today, with work and classes canceled nationwide. Packing gusts of nearly 300kph, the storm yesterday intensified into a typhoon and was expected to gain even more strength before hitting Taitung County, the US Navy’s Joint Typhoon Warning Center said. The storm is forecast to cross Taiwan’s south, enter the Taiwan Strait and head toward China, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The CWA labeled the storm a “strong typhoon,” the most powerful on its scale. Up to 1.2m of rainfall was expected in mountainous areas of eastern Taiwan and destructive winds are likely
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday at 5:30pm issued a sea warning for Typhoon Kong-rey as the storm drew closer to the east coast. As of 8pm yesterday, the storm was 670km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) and traveling northwest at 12kph to 16kph. It was packing maximum sustained winds of 162kph and gusts of up to 198kph, the CWA said. A land warning might be issued this morning for the storm, which is expected to have the strongest impact on Taiwan from tonight to early Friday morning, the agency said. Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) and Green Island (綠島) canceled classes and work
RSS