WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration on Thursday named a veteran diplomat as its new special representative for policy toward the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

Sung Kim, who completed his over-three-year tenure as US ambassador in Seoul late last month, was tapped by Secretary of State John Kerry to fill the vacancy left by Glyn Davies.

Sung, born in Seoul in 1960, was special envoy to the six-party talks and director of the Office of Korean affairs at the State Department. He had also worked at the US embassy in Tokyo and the department's office of Chinese and Mongolian affairs.

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