Dr. Sangdo Kim is Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Korea on the Council of ICAO and is also Consul General of Korean Consulate General in Montreal, Canada, since May 2021.
Prior to the Representative of the Korean Delegation to ICAO, Dr. Sangdo Kim held a number of executive and managerial positions at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of the Republic of Korea for three decades. Among many prominent posts he held for the government include serving as Deputy Minister for Civil Aviation, Director General for Comprehensive Transport Policy, Director General for Aviation Safety Policy, Alternate Representative of the Korean Delegation on the Council of ICAO, Director General for International Cooperation and Information Management, and as Directors of various Divisions such as Comprehensive Transport Policy, Air Transport Policy, International Air Transport, Motor Vehicle, and Logistics Facility & Information.
He has extensive experience and established expertise in areas of air transport policy and safety. He has been credited with his exceptional communication skills in both bilateral and multilateral settings and most widely recognized for his diplomatic determination and leadership in global negotiation. His most notable assignments include serving as Head of Delegation for air services negotiations for more than 20 times, and as Chief Negotiator in Motor Vehicle Safety Group in Korea-US FTA and Korea-EU FTA negotiations. He has further broadened his professional experience through cooperation with numerous leading international organizations such as ICAO, OECD, OECD/ITF (International Transport Forum), APEC and ESCAP. His policy and regulatory expertise also extends to a wide range of policy coordination and various modes of transportation.
Immediately prior, Dr. Kim led the Korea Office of Civil Aviation, 3 Regional Offices of Aviation and Air Traffic Management Office as Deputy Minister for Civil Aviation. He oversaw the governing of two of the most internationally engaged airport operators, Incheon International Airport Corporation and Korea Airports Corporation. His leadership has proved especially crucial in the unprecedentedly challenging times caused by COVID-19 as he helped guide the industry toward the recovery by providing airlines and ground handling service providers with emergency aid packages more than 10 times, and introducing a legal framework for establishing an institution funded by the two airport corporations and airlines to allow struggling businesses to access vital financial support. In his international engagement, Dr. Kim chaired the Korean delegation to a round of bilateral consultation, paving the way for the celebration of double-tracking route between the Republic of Korea and the Republic of China. His consistent drive and leadership achieved yet another milestone in subsequent years, by reaching a historic multilateral agreement to bring normalcy to the Fukue-Akara Corridor situation, the long-standing safety concern of international community. Most recently, based on his vast experience with ICAO, he established a team named ICAO and Global Partnerships under the Korea Office of Civil Aviation, dedicated to promoting Korea’s profile in international civil aviation through closer cooperation with ICAO and its member states.
Dr. Kim received his Ph. D in Aviation Management from Korea Aerospace University (2014), two Master’s degrees in Public Policy from UC Berkeley, USA (1998) and in Public Administration from Seoul National University (1990), and B.A. in Social Welfare from Seoul National University (1988). He was also a Visiting Fellow of Wolfson College, University of Cambridge, UK, in 2004.
E-mail: openskies380@gmail.com