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

South Korea's president appointed former North Korean diplomat Tae Yongho as a vice minister, the highest-ranking position for a North Korean defector in the country. Tae defected to South Korea in 2016, citing concerns for his children's future and despair over North Korea's leadership. President Yoon Suk Yeol appointed Tae to the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council, marking the first North Korean defector in a vice-ministerial role among the 34,000 who resettled in South Korea.