North Korea on Tuesday appointed Ri Seung Guk as the country’s new ambassador to Vietnam after years of delay due to North Korea's COVID-19-related border shutdown. This post had remained vacant since Ri’s predecessor Kim Myong-gil returned to North Korea in April 2019, Yonhap News Agency reported, citing North Korea’s foreign ministry. Ri has never before been mentioned in North Korea’s state-run media. North Korea on Tuesday also appointed Ri Kil-song as the country's ambassador to Singapore. It marked the first time in about more than three years that North Korea had named new ambassadors following the appointment of Ri Ryong-nam, North Korean ambassador to China, in 2021.
