Name: [Interview] Women Leaders: South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha (강경화 장관 영어 인터뷰 - 여성 리더)
Uploaded: 2025-11-19T12:06:07.000Z
Duration: 14 min 22 s
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I hope someday come a time when being the first woman in anything isn't news anymore because it is so, so frequent.

Foreign Minister, thank you so much for your time today.

To-infinitive

So you've done a lot of interviews, both as an interviewer and an interviewee, when it comes to humanitarian issues and other global affairs.

But I'm hoping that today might be one of those few times we can lighten things up a little bit and get to know you a little bit more as a person and talk a little bit about your personal journey as a woman leader.

I wanted to begin with your passion for global affairs.

When did you first spark an interest in bridging cultures?

Well, I guess I always grew up very curious about the world outside my own country, other countries and other peoples.

And perhaps having a father who was a first generation broadcaster in this country who dealt with issues outside the country was part of that.

But then having an opportunity to go and study abroad certainly made me much more aware of the diversity that's there and how difficult, in fact, it is for that diversity to communicate and to find harmony in all of that.

So intercultural communication was what I majored in as my PhD program in graduate school, but

I really didn't think that I would have the opportunity to practice it as the country's top diplomat.

Now, you've had a very diverse career background.

You started out as an English broadcaster here in Korea and later moved on to teaching at universities and then to public service.

So how would you describe your approach when it comes to making those choices in your career path?

Well, first of all, I'm very grateful and happy with every bit of that diverse experience that I've had.

It all comes together and is now part of my skill set in this current job.

But in terms of making career choices, I always go for what is new, not what promotes me, but

what brings me new experiences and new challenges.

And that partly explains why my career path is so diverse, because instead of staying in one track and seeing myself grow and be promoted in that track when there was opportunity to move outside and do something new, that was the choice I always made.

You were often named the first woman of many things.

You were the first Korean woman to hold a high level position at the United Nations.

And now you are our very first woman foreign minister of our country of South Korea.

Now, how do you feel whenever you get that title of Being the first woman woman, I've been wary of that title for a long, long time.

I think I've had my share of being the first woman of anything.

For a long time I've been hoping that many other women would share that title and many have.

I hope someday come a time when being the first woman in anything isn't news anymore because it is so frequent and I'm enormously honored.

But I think we have to speed up that time when it isn't news anymore to be the first woman in anything.

And as a woman working in a lot of leadership positions, what's been your biggest obstacle?

I think in my generation, growing up in the 60s, 70s and trying to make it in any career track in the 80s and 90s and so far we've had to deal with first of all, deep seated women, discrimination against women that is very much part of our traditional culture.

But personally I grew up in a family of just daughters.

I went to junior high school and high school of girls only.

So within that context I felt no discrimination.

But once you're in university and are faced with more men than women, it immediately hits that you are dealing with a very different kind of a human being, very different species.

But I think now after becoming a leader there is always this self doubt as can I do this?

And you also have the suspicion that am I being discriminated against?

Am I not getting what I deserve, not getting my decisions implemented because people are treating me as a woman.

So it's that both your self doubt and your, and

that inhibition is something that I constantly have to remind myself as not to detract me too much.

you sort of have to move beyond that and just deal with, you know, people at face value and just do your best.

Throughout your career, you've had a lot of opportunities to work with all these different types of leaders from all over the world.

So based on your experience, how would you define good leadership?

Yes, I've dealt with many leaders both inside the country and outside the country, but

So I can't speak for the private sector, but

I could simply sum them up into a couple of categories.

There are those who say serve me and those who say follow me and those who say work with me.

I think my style is follow me and work with me.

But leading by example I think is Critical.

I think for the leadership to be effective, you have to win the trust and respect of your crowd, your staff that you are trying to lead.

And you can't do that unless you have their respect and their trust.

And staff want a leader that they can be proud of.

They don't want a leader that they are ashamed of.

They have to find inspiration and motivation in the leader.

And I think that's best when you do it by saying follow me, but

being good at what you do, but also saying, work with me.

And I personally found that kind of leadership in bosses that I've worked with the best.

And speaking of inspiration, a lot of young women here in Korea look up to you as their role model in life.

Now, I would love to know, did you have anyone that you looked up to as a role model when you were younger?

Well, I think my own father, who nurtured me with unconditional love and trust and support.

And he's somebody who cared so much more for his staff than his boss.

And maybe that reflects my style of leadership as well.

So growing up, it was definitely my father.

But once, once out of school, there are a couple of men and women that I found inspiration.

And I can name many, but just to name three.

Madam Lee Yeon Suk, who is retired now, but she was member of Parliament and minister, and

she was a woman leader, but always empowering of younger women leaders.

when she decided you could use my support, she was fully supportive and very empowering.

And I am still in great admiration of her.

President Kim Dae Jung, whom I worked very closely for for about three years.

A great listener with just immense wisdom and just knew how to engage with any interlocutor that came by.

And just, you know, at the end of that conversation, everybody turning to be a fan.

And then I think Louise Arbor, who was the High Commissioner for Human Rights, who took me into the UN system and made me her deputy, and

I worked with her for about a year and a half, and we're still in close touch.

But I have to say, she has the sharpest, most mind of anybody I know.

She has the ability to penetrate any difficult issue and find logic in it and find a response to it.

And here comes the more personal side of this interview.

Aside from Being the top diplomat of our country, you're also a mother of three and a wife.

So how do you feel about the balance between your personal and your professional life?

Well, at this stage in life, I have the luxury of not having to care for my kids and family because they're all grown up.

In fact, it's the other way they tend to take care of me than the other way around.

So I think now I think I use 95% of my time on work and perhaps 5%, usually on weekdays, enjoying the family.

But that proportion of time spent on work and family would be very different from for younger people, obviously with young kids.

And you just need to find a way to balance that.