New U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Arrives After 1.5 Years; Michelle Steel Promises to Realize Trump's Alliance Vision

Newly appointed U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Steel arrived in South Korea today (30th) and emphasized strengthening the South Korea-U.S. alliance, stating, "Together, South Korea and the United States will realize President Trump's vision for the alliance."

In her arrival statement delivered at Incheon International Airport this afternoon, Ambassador Steel said, "The United States and the Republic of Korea have stood together for more than 140 years. Our alliance was forged in war and cemented in blood."

She continued, "Unwavering trust has been repeatedly proven through those who stood shoulder to shoulder to defend freedom. Today, our alliance stands as one of the strongest in the world."

Ambassador Steel stated, "In Gyeongju, President Trump and President Lee opened a new chapter in the South Korea-U.S. alliance. I look forward to working together with the Republic of Korea to ensure that our ironclad alliance remains a core axis supporting peace and security in this region moving forward."

She added, "Together, we will build the alliance vision presented by President Trump—an alliance that is stronger, more secure, and more prosperous than ever before."

Starting her remarks in Korean by saying, "I respectfully greet the people of Korea. Although I was born in Seoul, I have come to represent the United States," Ambassador Steel also concluded her statement with a greeting in Korean, saying, "Thank you so much for letting me stand on this land once again."

When asked by a reporter about her top priority during her tenure, she replied, "I will not take Q&A today. I have just arrived."

Born in Seoul in 1955, Ambassador Steel assumes her post as the new U.S. Ambassador to South Korea 1.6 years after former Ambassador Philip Goldberg's departure in January of last year.

Ambassador Steel previously immigrated to the United States, served as a member of the California State Board of Equalization and an Orange County Supervisor, and served as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 2021 to 2025.

As one of the first Korean-American women to enter the U.S. House of Representatives in 2020 alongside Representatives Young Kim and Marilyn Strickland, she has consistently raised her voice for strengthening the South Korea-U.S. alliance and North Korean human rights issues during her tenure.

Her political orientation is evaluated as strongly conservative.

Her husband, attorney Steel, served as the chairman of the California Republican Party and is known to have played a major role in Ambassador Steel's entry into federal politics.

Ambassador Steel's parents are displaced persons who escaped North Korea during the Korean War.

In a video posted on her past Facebook page, Ambassador Steel said, "My parents escaped North Korea. We lost everything because of the socialist system, but we were given the opportunity to build a better life in America."

She also stated, "I know very well the threat that socialism poses to the American Dream. That is why I fight in Congress to protect our freedom and preserve the American Dream."

Ahead of Ambassador Steel's regional election in 2024, President Trump expressed support for her via social media, describing her as an "America First patriot whose family escaped communism."

It is interpreted that her family history of leaving North Korea influenced her calling for stronger U.S. checks on China while raising her voice for the improvement of human rights for North Korean defectors during her term as a congresswoman.

In 2021, she urged via Twitter that "we must respond on a bipartisan basis to the threat of the Chinese Communist Party" and called for blocking the influence within the U.S. of Confucius Institutes, Chinese government-sponsored overseas educational institutions.

In 2023, she participated in the House Foreign Affairs Committee's Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, established to explore ways to check China.

At the time, Ambassador Steel stated, "On the China Select Committee, I will continue the fight to hold the Chinese Communist Party accountable for its horrific human rights abuses and the theft of intellectual property held by the United States."

In March 2024, she introduced a congressional resolution urging the U.S. government to take joint responses with partner countries to resolve human rights issues faced by North Korean defectors in China, such as forced labor, detention, human trafficking, and forcible repatriation.

In addition, evaluations suggest she has a deep affection for South Korea, having taken the lead in responding to Harvard Law School Professor J. Mark Ramseyer's distortion of history regarding victims of Japan's military sexual slavery, urged the expansion of "COVID-19 vaccine" supplies to South Korea, and introduced the "Divided Families National Registry Act" to help Korean-Americans separated from their families in North Korea since the Korean War reunite with them.

Ambassador Steel served as an Asia-Pacific Advisory Committee member under former President George W. Bush in 2001 and as co-chair of then-President Trump's Asia-Pacific Advisory Committee during his first term in 2019, actively voicing opinions in the establishment of the White House's Asia-Pacific policy.

During her term as a freshman lawmaker in 2021, she joined other Republican lawmakers in opposing the "end-of-war declaration" pursued by the Moon Jae-in administration in South Korea.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.