On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate officially confirmed former Representative Michelle Park Steel as the next U.S. Ambassador to South Korea.

With this, Ambassador Steel becomes the second Korean-American to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to South Korea, following Sung Kim, who served during the Obama administration.

Her appointment is drawing particular attention, especially in light of concerns regarding the future of the ROK-U.S. alliance, given that she is a career politician rather than a traditional career diplomat.

The Senate held a cloture vote on the motion to end debate at 12:40 p.m. that day, which passed 54-41, before proceeding to the final confirmation vote at approximately 12:15 p.m.

The roll-call vote resulted in a 55-39 confirmation of the nominee as Ambassador to South Korea.

Democratic Senators Tim Kaine (Virginia) and Jeanne Shaheen (New Hampshire), along with Independent Senator Angus King (Maine), joined Republican senators in voting in favor of the confirmation.

Six senators did not cast a vote: Michael Bennet (D-Colorado), Cory Booker (D-New Jersey), Ruben Gallego (D-Arizona), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-New York), Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), and Raphael Warnock (D-Georgia).

Additionally, it was confirmed that Senator Andy Kim (D-New Jersey), who is also of Korean descent, cast a vote against the appointment.

During the confirmation hearing held on Wednesday, May 20, questions regarding Ambassador Steel's qualifications were not raised; instead, the session was dominated by concerns directed at the South Korean government. In particular, senators expressed significant interest in the details of how the South Korean government intends to fulfill its pledge of $350 billion in investments in the U.S., and urged the ambassador to prioritize support for U.S. investment projects, including those involving Korea Zinc.

Ambassador Steel, whose parents were North Korean refugees who fled to the South during the Korean War, was born in Seoul in 1955. She moved to Japan with her diplomat father before immigrating to the United States in 1975. After serving as an elected member of the California State Board of Equalization and as an Orange County Supervisor, she served for four years as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives starting in 2021, where she served on the Committee on Ways and Means and the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party.

Ambassador Steel is scheduled to depart for Seoul as soon as she receives her commission from President Trump.

U.S. NNP = Representative Reporter Hong Sung-goo / Special Correspondent for our publication, NNP info@newsandpost.com