In a first, South Korea appoints woman as foreign minister
Kang Kyung-wha was appointed as UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights in September 2006.
Seoul: Kang Kyung-wha was appointed as South Korea's first woman foreign minister on Sunday despite facing strong objections from the opposition parties.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in appointed Kang after the opposition-led parliament failed to issue a report on the outcome of its confirmation hearing for her.
President Moon urged Kang to show actions that will prove the opposition parties' objections wrong.
"I want you to truly help expand the external appearance of our diplomatic relations and show how great our capabilities are. I hope you would make those who have opposed you realise that they were wrong," Yonhap news agency quoted President Moon as saying to Kang.
Kang, a former UN official, has been accused of alleged tax evasions and false registration of address for her daughter.
She was appointed by the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator in the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in March 2013.
Previous to this position, she served as United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights. She was appointed to this position by United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan in September 2006.