TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — On Tuesday (Nov. 2), South Korean media reported that the administration of President Yoon Suk-yeol may send a high-ranking military officer to serve as its envoy to Taiwan.

Multiple Korean news outlets reported that the Yoon administration is in the process of verifying a four-star reserve general and former Chief of Staff from their armed forces to be appointed as Head of Mission in Taipei. Reports have not yet identified which general is under consideration for the post.

The Korean Mission in Taipei was established following Seoul’s 1992 decision to break official ties with Taipei in favor of Beijing. However, since its opening in 1993, the Korean Mission has served as the de facto representative office for the Republic of Korea, maintaining diplomatic and trade relations with Taiwan.

UDN notes that in the past, scholars or diplomats representing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have traditionally served as the Head of the Korean Mission in Taipei. The appointment of a military general from the office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff would be a significant contrast to the appointments of the last two decades.

However, a notable historical exception is Kang Min-soo, the second official to serve as Head of Mission in Taipei. Kang was a Vice-Chief of Staff to the Korean Air Force before he was sent to Taipei in 1996. He took the post a few months after the Third Taiwan Strait Crisis began and served in Taipei until 1999.

Recent threats from the Chinese government and their large-scale military exercises, which followed the August visit of U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, have sparked what many observers are calling the Fourth Taiwan Strait Crisis. Therefore, such an appointment would have a historical precedent.

CNA reports that the current Head of Mission Chung Byong-won, who was appointed by the previous administration of Moon Jae-in, has served in the post for less than a year. The current administration under Yoon Suk-yeol, who took office in May, has taken a much stronger position than his predecessor on confronting North Korea and prepping the nation against potential military threats.

The appointment of a four-star military general as Head of the Korean Mission in Taipei would signal a shift in Seoul’s attitude towards relations with Taiwan, reflecting an increased focus on regional security.