Deputy US Secretary of State Wendy Sherman to retire

Seasoned Washington diplomat was lead negotiator in 2015 Iran nuclear deal talks

Wendy Sherman listens to lawmakers during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on US policy towards China. Reuters

Wendy Sherman, the deputy US secretary of state, is retiring, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement on Friday.

Ms Sherman, who has served at the US State Department for more than three decades, announced her retirement in an email to employees, The Wall Street Journal reported.

She is expected to leave on June 30.

“Our nation is safer and more secure, and our partnerships more robust, due to her leadership,” Mr Blinken said.

The first woman to serve as deputy secretary of state, Ms Sherman was a key figure in negotiations with Iran, China, North Korea and Russia.

She also played a key role in unifying allies' efforts to support Ukraine before Russia's invasion.

Mr Blinken credited Ms Sherman with strengthening US relationships with South Korea, Japan and the EU.

“Her remarkable career — which spans more than three decades, three presidents and five secretaries of state — addressed some of the toughest foreign policy challenges of our time,” Mr Blinken said.

She was the lead negotiator for the US in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which Donald Trump withdrew from in 2018.

Before her appointment as deputy secretary of state, she had pushed for the swift return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.