Ex-Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Kang Shin-chul Nominated as Defense Minister

SEOUL, Aug. 30 (Yonhap) -- Kang Shin-chul, South Korea's ambassador to Saudi Arabia, was named Sunday as the nominee for defense minister.

A retired four-star general and former deputy commander of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command (CFC), Kang is seen as both a battled-tested operator and a strategist well-versed in broader defense policy.

Within military circles, he is also known for a leadership style described as inclusive and reasonable.

Since he graduated from the Korea Military Academy, the 58-year-old has held a series of important posts at the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) and the CFC, earning appointments to key positions under both liberal and conservative governments.

Under the conservative Park Geun-hye administration, he served as military secretary to then Defense Minister Han Min-koo from 2016-17.

He later worked at the presidential National Security Office from 2021-22 under the progressive Moon Jae-in government. He served as secretary for defense reform and also for security and defense strategy at that time.

Even with the start of the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, he remained in the inner circle, heading the JCS Operations Headquarters before being promoted to four-star general and named deputy commander of the CFC in 2023. This is the highest rank a South Korean general can hold in the command.

He served as CFC deputy commander until his retirement in September 2025. Since January, he has served as ambassador to Saudi Arabia.