Ex-North Korean diplomat appointed a vice minister in South Korea, the highest post for any defector

South Korea’s president has appointed a prominent North Korean defector as a vice minister, the highest-level government job for any of the thousands of North Koreans who have resettled in South Korea. President Yoon Suk Yeol’s office said Thursday that Tae Yongho was named secretary general the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council. Tae was a minister of the North Korean Embassy in London when he defected in 2016, saying he did so because he didn’t want his children to live “miserable” lives. About 34,000 North Koreans have fled to South Korea.