New S Korean PM chosen

Mr Park (centre) resigned after tax evasion scandal

By Caroline Gluck in Seoul

South Korean President Kim Dae-jung has named the leader of his former coalition partner as his new prime minister.

Lee Han-dong, 65, head of the United Liberal Democrats (ULD), will succeed former prime minister, Park Tae-joon, who resigned last week over a tax evasion scandal.

The appointment is expected to strengthen the president's standing in parliament, where his party remains in the minority position.

The appointment of Mr Lee as prime minister still has to be approved by the National Assembly, but it is expected to be endorsed with the support of his party and a number of independent members.

The opposition GNP is not happy with Mr Lee's appointment

The move will bolster President Kim's position. His Millennium Democratic party lacks a working majority and trailed behind the main opposition Grand National Party in April's general election.

The GNP won a plurality of votes in parliament, but lacks a working majority.

The move signals a de facto renewal of the alliance between the president's party and the smaller conservative ULD.

Their coalition partnership was broken off just two months before the general election, with the ULD accusing President Kim of reneging on an agreement to push through political reforms, including adopting a parliamentary, rather than presidential, system of government.

Reforms

The premiership in South Korea remains largely a ceremonial role, with most power vested in the president.

But news of the appointment has not gone down well with the opposition GNP, whose spokesman was quoted as saying it meant the beginning of political confrontation.

Mr Lee's relations with the GNP are poor; he once headed the party and is seen by his former loyalists as a defector.

President Kim is hoping to push through economic and political reforms during the second half of his term in office - a task many had feared might be hampered as a result of his party's poor showing in the polls.