Chinese deputy ambassador to UN tapped as new top envoy to Seoul

Chinese Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Dai Bing was reportedly named as new top envoy to South Korea.

Dai Bing, China's deputy ambassador to the United Nations, speaks during a Security Council meeting at the UN headquarters in New York on Dec. 22, 2023. [AP/YONHAP]

Chinese Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Dai Bing was reportedly named as new top envoy to South Korea, diplomatic sources said Wednesday.

The Chinese government is in the final stages of reviewing the nomination and may announce the appointment as early as this week, local media outlets reported Wednesday.

Dai, a career diplomat, an Africa expert, is a graduate of Anhui Normal University and joined the Chinese Foreign Ministry in 1995.

He has held posts in countries including South Africa and Singapore and was appointed to China's Permanent Mission to the UN in 2020.

The Chinese ambassador post has been vacant for over three months since Ambassador Xing Haiming's departure from Seoul in July.

The diplomatic protocol process to approve a new ambassador appointee, known as agrement, usually takes over a month.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]