The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee has approved the nomination of Robert King as special envoy for North Korean human rights.

King is likely to be approved by the full Senate soon.

Unlike his predecessor, Jay Lefkowitz, who worked on a part-time basis, King will be working full-time as an ambassador.

A State Department official said that the move to make the envoy post a full-time position demonstrates how focused Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is on resolving the North’s human rights issues.

King was appointed to the special envoy post by U.S. President Barack Obama back in September.

He was the chief of staff to Congressman Tom Lantos, who was chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and founder of the congressional Human Rights Caucus. King was involved in proposing the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004.