North Korea has appointed Ri Sung-guk as its ambassador to Vietnam, filling a post that had been left vacant for over five years. 

The North’s foreign ministry announced the appointment on Tuesday. 

Ri has never before been mentioned in the North’s state-run media. 

In the wake of the second North Korea-U.S. summit, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited Vietnam in February and March of 2019 and promised to upgrade the regime’s relations with Vietnam. 

Observers had speculated that a heavyweight diplomat would succeed then Ambassador Kim Myong-gil who returned to the North in April 2019. 

However, the top post remained vacant for over five years after the COVID-19 pandemic broke out.