Roh to shake up foreign and security policy team Wednesday: source

President Roh Moo-hyun will carry out a reshuffle of his administration's foreign and security policy team on Wednesday and is expected to name his chief security secretary Song Min-soon as the foreign minister, a source at Roh's office Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday.

The president is expected to appoint Lee Jae-joung, former lawmaker of the ruling Uri Party, to the post of unification minister and Army Chief of Staff Kim Jang-soo as his new defense minister, said the source.

In addition, the president is likely to promote Kim Man-bok, first deputy director of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), to the top post of the country's spy agency, the source said. As for the person to succeed Song as the top presidential security policy advisor, the source said Cheong Wa Dae has narrowed the list of candidates to three -- outgoing Defense Minister Yoon Kwang-ung, Kim Ha-joong, Seoul's ambassador to Beijing, and an unidentified defense expert.

But he said it is not clear whether the appointment of Song's successor will be announced at the same time as the partial Cabinet shakeup on Wednesday.

The 58-year-old Song, who had previously served as South Korea's top negotiator at the six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear problem, is known for having mapped out the nation's key security and foreign policies.

Lee, 62, had served as president of Sungkonghoe University, a Seoul-based seminary, and now holds the title of senior vice chairman of the National Unification Advisory Council. Lee is known to follow the outline of outgoing Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok's North Korea policies.

Kim Man-bok, who is considered certain to replace Kim Seung-kyu as the new chief of the NIS, has served at various NIS posts over the past 30 years.

Seoul, Oct. 31 (Yonhap News)