ⓒYONHAP News

Moon also picked former lawmaker Park Jie-won of the minor opposition Party for People's Livelihoods as the head of the National Intelligence Service(NIS).

Presidential spokesperson Kang Min-seok on Friday announced the reshuffle in the wake of recent inter-Korean tension.

"Unification Minister-nominee Lee In-young is a fourth-term lawmaker who was a student democracy activist. He has ample experience and expertise in inter-Korean relations as the former chairman of the Democratic Party's inter-Korean relations and unification committee. Nominee Lee is the right person to take the lead in resolving stalled inter-Korean relations and find a breakthrough in restoring the cross-border trust with his field and parliamentary experience and expertise to eventually achieve the aim of inter-Korean reconciliation and the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."

The spokesman also highlighted NIS chief nominee Park's experience of carrying out the Sunshine Policy of engagement under the Kim Dae-jung administration.

"NIS Director-nominee Park Jie-won is a four-term lawmaker who is able to issue clear and brief political messages and is well capable of intelligence analysis. He is also familiar with the work of the NIS as a three-term parliamentary intelligence committee member."

"Nominee Park contributed much to the 2000 inter-Korean summit agreement, and has expertise in North Korea issues, providing advice to South-North issues under the incumbent government."

The incumbent NIS chief Suh Hoon was named the new presidential national security adviser, replacing Ambassador Chung Eui-yong.

Chung and former Presidential Chief of Staff Im Jong-seok will assist Moon as his new special advisers for foreign affairs.

The reshuffle comes after the resignation of Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul last month, who stepped down following North Korea's demolition of an inter-Korean liaison office.

The strained cross-border ties have sparked criticism that the Moon administration's foreign affairs, security and unification staff failed to make progress in inter-Korean and Washington-Pyongyang relations.