[Profile] Defense Minister Nominee Lee Jong-seop

[Asia Economy Military Specialist Yang Nak-gyu] If Lee Jong-seop (62), former Deputy Chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (retired Lieutenant General), who has been nominated as the first Minister of National Defense under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, becomes the Minister of National Defense, he will be the first Lieutenant General appointee in 18 years since Yoon Kwang-woong, former Minister of National Defense under the Roh Moo-hyun administration in 2004 (a Navy Lieutenant General).

Candidate Lee is regarded as an expert in defense policy and planning, having designed the ROK-US combined command structure. During his active service, he served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Administration of the Army’s 1st Corps, Deputy Director of Policy Planning at the Ministry of National Defense, Commander of the Army’s 2nd Division (Major General) in 2013, and Director of the New Combined Defense Promotion Group at the Joint Chiefs of Staff (Major General). Later, he served as Commander of the 7th Corps (Lieutenant General) in 2016, and from 2017 to 2018, he was Deputy Chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff before retiring as a Lieutenant General. He is currently serving as a member of the Foreign and Security Subcommittee of the Presidential Transition Committee.

He is from Yeongcheon, Gyeongbuk, and is a graduate of the 40th class of the Korea Military Academy. He is one class senior to the current Minister of National Defense, Seo Wook, who was the last defense minister under the Moon Jae-in administration.

This appointment is widely analyzed as reflecting President-elect Yoon’s defense policy stance, which emphasizes strengthening the ROK-US alliance. The retired Lieutenant General has experience working in the Ministry of National Defense’s policy sector, is well-versed in ROK-US military relations, and has experience with the transfer of wartime operational control while at the Joint Chiefs of Staff. His expertise in ROK-US military relations and current issues is believed to have been a factor in his selection.

In the first cabinet appointment briefing materials released by the Transition Committee on the same day, he was introduced as "a figure who earned a Ph.D. in International Politics on the ROK-US alliance from the University of Tennessee, served as the Ministry of National Defense’s Policy Office’s U.S. Policy Officer, Deputy Director of Policy Planning, Director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff’s New Combined Defense Promotion Group, and an administrative officer at the Blue House’s Office of Foreign Affairs and Security, and is highly evaluated for his expertise in managing current issues and policy development related to the ROK-US alliance."

It also emphasized, "He is expected to greatly contribute to establishing a strong integrated defense posture against external threats through close cooperation with the Presidential Office, other ministries, and allied countries, while formulating and promoting practical defense policies that can flexibly respond to rapidly changing security environments."

The selection of a Korea Military Academy graduate as the first Minister of National Defense candidate under the Yoon Suk-yeol government is also interpreted as a move to differentiate from the so-called "KMA neglect theory" that arose as non-KMA generals were widely appointed to key positions during the Moon Jae-in administration.

▲ Yeongcheon, Gyeongbuk (62) ▲ Daegu Dalseong High School ▲ Korea Military Academy 40th class ▲ Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Tennessee ▲ Deputy Chief of Staff for Administration, Army 1st Corps ▲ Deputy Director of Policy Planning, Ministry of National Defense ▲ Commander, Army 2nd Division (Major General) ▲ Director, New Combined Defense Promotion Group, Joint Chiefs of Staff (Major General) ▲ Commander, Army 7th Corps (Lieutenant General) ▲ Deputy Chief of Joint Chiefs of Staff (Lieutenant General) ▲ Member, Foreign and Security Subcommittee, Presidential Transition Committee (current)