South Korean President Lee Jae-myung on Monday announced a sweeping Cabinet reshuffle, naming a mix of career technocrats, senior lawmakers and – in a striking departure from precedent – the country’s first civilian defense minister in 64 years.
Political pundits said the move underscores Lee’s emphasis on pragmatism and performance as he sets the tone for his administration, which is now in its third week.
The presidential office unveiled the list of Lee’s picks for 11 Cabinet positions, including ministers for defense, unification, environment, science, labor and gender equality.
Among the most eye-catching nominations was Bae Kyung-hoon, head of LG AI Research, LG Group’s artificial intelligence research institute. A 48-year-old AI expert with deep private-sector experience, Bae was tapped as Korea’s minister for Science and ICT.
He is set to co-lead the government’s push into frontier technologies alongside Ha Jung-woo, a former Naver Corp. executive who currently serves as senior AI advisor in the presidential office.
“This is a Cabinet grounded in pragmatism and performance,” said Kang Hoon-sik, President Lee’s chief of staff. “The president believes in breaking down the walls between the public and private sectors to revitalize the Korean economy.”
Bae’s appointment also signals a broader strategic pivot in Seoul, as the government gears up to address both short-term economic headwinds and longer-term competitiveness concerns amid intensifying global technological rivalries.
TECHNOCRATIC LEADERSHIP
Bae’s nomination is part of a broader recalibration of technocratic leadership, with several business executives now slated to enter government.
Han Seong-sook, former chief executive of Korea’s internet portal giant Naver, was named to lead the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.
“We are bringing in people who have proven themselves at the cutting edge of innovation, who understand the speed and complexity of today’s industrial challenges,” said a presidential official.
Bae, who previously held senior roles at SK Telecom Co. and LG Group, led the development of Exaone, Korea’s only large language AI model recognized in Stanford’s global AI index.
In remarks at a recent AI infrastructure launch event attended by President Lee, Bae emphasized the need for Korea to move beyond replicating Silicon Valley’s playbook.
“We cannot win by playing the same game,” he said. “We need to specialize in areas such as bio-AI and manufacturing AI, and reinvent the industrial paradigm.”
Presidential Chief of Staff Kang said, “We expect Bae to achieve our government’s goal of becoming one of the world’s top three AI powers.”
Han, for her part, is credited with expanding Naver’s footprint globally, overseeing launches of services such as Line and Naver Webtoon. She is expected to push aggressive government support for tech startups, AI scaling and creating innovation hubs.
FIRST NON-MILITARY FIGURE AS DEFENSE MINISTER
While the tech and innovation portfolios are handed to private-sector figures, President Lee turned to experienced political hands and bureaucrats for foreign and security affairs.
Lee named Ahn Gyu-back, a five-term lawmaker of the ruling Democratic Party, as the country’s first civilian defense minister in 64 years, making good on his campaign promise after December’s martial law shook faith in the military. Ahn has worked for more than a decade as a member of the National Assembly’s defense committee.
The military has come under scrutiny since ousted former President Yoon Suk Yeol deployed troops to the National Assembly last December to block lawmakers from stopping his brief imposition of martial law. Yoon was removed from office in April over the martial law bid.
The president nominated former UN ambassador Cho Hyun as foreign minister and a North Korea diplomacy advocate, Chung Dong-young, as unification minister.
Song Mi-ryeong, the current agriculture minister who was appointed by Yoon, will retain her post.
PRAGMATISM AS THE THROUGH LINE
Analysts said the Cabinet line-up reflects a dual logic: continuity and capability in ministries facing immediate policy challenges, and disruption and innovation where Korea needs long-term strategic shifts.
“This is not a left-right reshuffle. It’s a technocratic one,” said a presidential aide close to the matter. “The president is less concerned with political ideology than with what ministers can deliver.”
Lee’s reshuffle may set the stage for further structural reforms, including a reorganization of the Environment Ministry, to be headed by Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Sung-whan, and renewed scrutiny over the fate of the Ministry of Gender Equality, now set to come under ruling party lawmaker Kang Sun-woo.
In another rare nomination, Lee appointed Kim Young-hoon, former head of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, one of the country’s most militant labor groups, as labor minister.
Earlier this month, the president named a long-term member of Parliament and a key political ally, Kim Min-seok, to be his prime minister.
By In-Soo Nam
isnam@hankyung.com
Jennifer Nicholson-Breen edited this article.
