Trump picks negotiators for key security posts...The North Korea-US dialogue signal?

[Anchor]
President-elect Trump has selected Alex Wong, former head of the U.S. State Department's special department for North Korea, the first line of negotiations on North Korea, for the White House security post.

As he is a negotiator who has emphasized dialogue between North Korea and the U.S., it is interpreted that Trump intends to unravel the thread of North Korea-U.S. relations that have been twisted closely with North Korea and Russia.

I'm correspondent Lee Seung-yoon from New York.

[Reporter]
President-elect Trump has selected Alex Wong, who was in charge of the North Korea-U.S. summit during the first administration, as the White House's chief deputy national security adviser.

In July 2018, he was in charge of follow-up negotiations for the North Korea-US summit in Singapore, and later oversaw the North Korea-US negotiations as the U.S. State Department's special representative for North Korea.

Wong is a negotiator who emphasized North Korea-U.S. dialogue even after the "Hanoi no-deal" in February 2019 and the breakdown of working-level negotiations between the U.S. and North Korea in Stockholm in October during the first period.

[Alex Wong / White House Senior Deputy National Security Adviser (last 2020): North Korea is running its own negotiating team. When they are ready to take their chances, our team will also be preparing.]

Trump's appointment of Wong, who North Korea also remembers, to an important security position is interpreted as a sign of his intention to resolve the U.S.-North Korea relationship, which has been twisted by close ties between North Korea and Russia.

[Donald Trump/U.S. President-elect (last July): When he goes back to the White House, he will get along well with Chairman Kim Jong-un. Kim Jong-un is also hoping and missing me.]

Trump is emphasizing loyalty in the second term to the extent that none of the key figures in the North Korea negotiation team were selected in the first term except Wong.

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Bout is expected to play a key role in restructuring the government and ousting non-loyal government officials, which calls for strengthening presidential powers.

I'm YTN's Lee Seungyoon from New York.