Lee Yun-hyang, former director of the State Department's Office of Language Services and Donald Trump's interpreter, met with Korean reporters in Washington on March 26 to recall the three US-North Korea summits. She described the tense yet warm atmosphere of the 2018 Singapore, 2019 Hanoi, and Panmunjom meetings, highlighting the leaders' determination for dialogue. Lee said she used her tone to foster a positive mood during the talks.
WASHINGTON -- Lee Yun-hyang, Donald Trump's former interpreter and ex-director of the State Department's Office of Language Services, spoke to Korean reporters on March 26, about a month after retiring following 17 years of service. She attended all three in-person Trump-Kim Jong-un summits: Singapore in 2018, Hanoi in February 2019, and Panmunjom in June 2019. She had previously interpreted for Presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden. 'I think Chairman Kim Jong-un handled (the summit with Trump) very well given that Kim came to the summit without that much (diplomatic) experience,' she said. Both leaders were nervous amid global attention, but Lee used her tone and delivery 'to help foster a comfortable, positive and calm atmosphere,' ensuring her voice did not shake. She described the mood as 'warm and friendly,' with the leaders showing 'determination and will to address (pending issues)' through 'sincere dialogue' and 'candid conversation.' However, '(m)aking a deal wasn't just a matter that concerns only the two leaders. There were various complex elements associated with it,' including North Korea's nuclear issue. Lee affirmed Trump's claim of a good relationship with Kim. For her, whose mother was born in North Korea, interpreting the talks held special meaning. 'The meeting was possible because of President Trump, who approached it with a shift in thinking,' she said. Recalling challenges, she toned down Vice President Biden's 2013 remark to President Park Geun-hye -- 'It's never been a good bet to bet against America' -- to suit sensitivities, but it caused confusion with Seoul's foreign ministry. Obama spoke in 'legal document'-like sentences requiring strong memory; Trump had a 'very fast thought process.' She called Seoul-Washington ties 'always very robust.' On AI in interpretation, 'there are still many errors -- a reason why human translators have to proofread them.' Lee joined the State Department in 2009 after teaching at Ewha Womans University Graduate School of Interpretation, overseeing 70 full-time staff and 1,000 contractors for over 60 languages. She learned English as a teen in Iran and holds a master's from Hankook University of Foreign Studies and a doctorate from the University of Geneva.
