The United States Senate confirmed Wendy R. Sherman as deputy secretary of state on Tuesday, ushering into the White House a well-known foreign policy veteran with North Korea experience.

Sherman, who was nominated by President Joe Biden in January, once traveled to North Korea to meet with leader Kim Jong Il in 2000 when she served as a counselor to the secretary of state under the Bill Clinton Administration and as a policy coordinator on North Korea. She also worked as the lead negotiator with Iran as undersecretary of state for political affairs during President Barack Obama’s administration, helping to negotiate the controversial Iran nuclear deal in 2015.