Hardline expert named as new unification minister on N. Korea

SEOUL, Jan. 19 (Yonhap) -- Hyun In-taek, a foreign affairs advisor to President
Lee Myung-bak during his election campaign, is a hardliner who prioritizes North
Korea's denuclearization over progress in inter-Korean relations.
Hyun was the major architect of Lee's key North Korea doctrine called
"Denuclearization, Openness, 3000," in which South Korea proposed helping
increase North Korea's per capita income to $3,000 should Pyongyang abandon its
nuclear program.
He was considered the leading candidate for foreign minister or senior
presidential secretary for foreign affairs when Lee's administration was
inaugurated in February, but he remained in academic circles and served as an
informal advisor.
The 54-year-old nominee, a native of Jeju Island, is also known for his wide
working relationship with academics both at home and abroad and is being counted
on to broadly publicize and promote Lee administration's North Korea policy.
Hyun majored in politics and foreign affairs at Korea University, President Lee's
alma mater, and earned a Ph.D. in international politics from the University of
California, Los Angeles.
hkim@yna.co.kr
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