SEOUL, August 12 (AJP) - President Lee Jae Myung welcomed U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Steel on Wednesday in their first meeting since the Korean American and former congresswoman took up her post in Seoul.
Lee greeted Steel at Cheong Wa Dae during a ceremony in which he received credentials from newly appointed ambassadors of four countries.
After accepting Steel's credentials, Lee said, "Welcome," before posing with her for a commemorative photo. He then offered the same greeting to her husband, attorney Shawn Steel, who accompanied her to the ceremony, and posed for another photo.
A credentials presentation ceremony is a formal diplomatic event in which a newly appointed ambassador presents a letter of credence issued by the head of state of the ambassador's home country to the head of state of the host country.
Lee also received credentials from Portuguese Ambassador Vanda Maria Dias Stelzer Sequeira, United Arab Emirates Ambassador Jamal Abdullah Al Suwaidi and Irish Ambassador Sean Hoy.
Steel, born in Seoul in 1955, spent part of her youth in Japan before moving to the United States with her family in 1975. She later built a political career in California, serving on the California State Board of Equalization from 2007 to 2015 and the Orange County Board of Supervisors from 2015 to 2021.
A Republican, Steel served two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2021 to 2025, representing California's 48th and later 45th congressional districts. She was among the first Korean American women elected to Congress. President Donald Trump nominated her as ambassador to South Korea in April, and the Senate confirmed her on June 17. Steel is the second Korean American to serve as U.S. ambassador to South Korea, after Sung Kim, and the first Korean American woman to hold the post.
Steel arrived in South Korea on July 30 and has since begun a series of diplomatic and public engagements. Before Wednesday's meeting with Lee, she met National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac on Aug. 4 to discuss key issues concerning the South Korea-U.S. alliance.
AJP Takeaways:
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President Lee Jae Myung met U.S. Ambassador Michelle Steel at Cheong Wa Dae on Wednesday, their first meeting since she began her post in Seoul.
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Michelle Steel is the first Korean American woman to serve as U.S. ambassador to South Korea and the second Korean American to hold the position, after Sung Kim.
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Steel, a former Republican U.S. congresswoman from California, arrived in South Korea on July 30 and has begun diplomatic engagements focused on the South Korea-U.S. alliance.
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