By Song Sang-ho

WASHINGTON, July 23 (Yonhap) -- New U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Steel said Thursday that she will depart for Seoul next week, as she highlighted the task of strengthening the Seoul-Washington alliance as her "top priority."

Steel made the remarks in response to a question from Yonhap News Agency while attending an event marking the opening of the Korea-U.S. Shipbuilding Partnership Center (KUSPC) in Washington -- a platform to facilitate South Korea's planned US$150 billion investment in the U.S. shipbuilding sector.

"Next week," she said, referring Yonhap News Agency to the State Department for other questions.

The top envoy is widely expected to depart for South Korea around Wednesday next week as Seoul and Washington face a series of pending issues, including implementing bilateral agreements on security, trade and investment and continuing joint efforts to "modernize" the decades-old alliance.

Steel, a former two-term congresswoman, is set to fill the ambassador post, which has been left vacant since former Ambassador Philip Goldberg left Korea in January last year.

She is the second Korean American to serve as the U.S.' top envoy to South Korea, following former Ambassador Sung Kim, who served in Seoul as ambassador from 2011–2014.

sshluck@yna.co.kr

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