Former colleagues, Korean American friends and other acquaintances held a special retirement celebration for former veteran diplomat Sung Kim, best known for his negotiations with North Korea, in Washington on Wednesday.

Organized by the Council of Korean Americans, the celebration was filled with current and former U.S. diplomats and other prominent figures, including former Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte, U.S. Senior Official for North Korea Jung Pak and U.S. Special Representative for North Korean Human Rights Issues Julie Turner.

Kim, a Korean American, retired late last year, ending decades of public service, including his stint as a prosecutor and the top U.S. nuclear negotiator, as well as ambassadorial posts in South Korea, the Philippines and Indonesia.

“Am I sick? Is it why people are being so nice to me?” Kim said in jest, referring to his colleagues commending his dedication to foreign service, calm demeanor and pursuit of a work-life balance that they said have positively affected t
heir often challenging diplomatic undertakings and, not least, their morale.

“It’s a tremendous honor to be celebrating my retirement with all of you,” he added.

Touching on U.S. officials carrying out what he calls the “tough” work on North Korea, Kim left a simple message: “Good luck.”

“Obviously, it is a challenging issue, but we need to keep at it and so proud that we have wonderful colleagues like Jung Pak and others from the desk continuing to work,” he said.

Pak, Kim’s successor, described him as a “consummate professional.”

“In watching a consummate professional, a larger-than-life figure doing what he does best, being surrounded by photographers, well-wishers and admirers, it’s really been such a pleasure for me to learn from you and to see you over the years do all the great work,” she said.

Laura Rosenberger, Kim’s former colleague, pointed out his nickname, “dad,” when he and his team were involved in the “six party” talks on the North’s denuclearization in the 2000s. The talks involved the
two Koreas, the U.S., China, Japan and Russia.

“Dad was always on the road. He would be gone for long periods of time (for the talks),” she said. “But he would come back. … He would boost the morale of the whole team, and would just always ensure we were so well taken care of.”

She highlighted that Kim was “the only person who’s ever worn Ferragamo shoes into a North Korean nuclear reactor” as she talked about his trip to a North Korean nuclear facility in the past. She then quipped he had to give up those shoes “when they may have gotten a little bit of contamination.”

After retirement, Kim joined Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea’s largest automaker, as an adviser.

Kim entered U.S. foreign service in 1988 and served as the ambassador to South Korea from 2011-2014, to the Philippines from 2016-2020 and to Indonesia from 2020-2023.

Source: Yonhap News Agency