New US Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Steel said Thursday she will depart for Seoul next week, calling alliance reinforcement her top priority.
Ambassador Michelle Steel made the remarks at an event in Washington marking the opening of the Korea-US Shipbuilding Partnership Center. She called the bilateral alliance's expansion into shipbuilding a "new" and "important" territory.
Steel highlighted South Korea's $150 billion investment commitment and specific projects, including Hanwha Group's $5 billion plan in Philadelphia. The center supports the MASGA initiative from last year's trade deal.
Steel, a former two-term congresswoman, will fill the post vacant since Philip Goldberg departed in January last year. She is the second Korean American in the role after Sung Kim, who served from 2011 to 2014.
