South Korean President Moon Jae-in appointed Lee In-young the country's new Unification Minister on Monday, Yonhap reported.

Lee went immediately to work at the ministry at 2 p.m. without a formal inauguration ceremony.

"Let us make bold changes with strategic approaches, and let the unification ministry be at the center of 'the time of the two Koreas,'" Lee said in a text message sent to ministry officials.

The 56-year-old, who served as floor leader of the Democratic Party, was nominated early this month to replace the former minister, Kim Yeon-chul, who resigned over recently strained relations between the North （DPRK）and South.

Kim resigned after Pyongyang blew up a joint liaison office on June 16 in protest of anti-Pyongyang leaflet campaigns carried out by civic groups in the South.