U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lunched on Sunday with Laura Ling, one of the two American journalists who had been detained in North Korea.

Clinton, Ling, the family of the Chinese American reporter, and State Department employees dined at a Korean restaurant near Washington, D.C.

Clinton encouraged Ling and commended the State Department staff for their efforts to free the two journalists.

The other reporter, Korean American Euna Lee, could not attend as she’s currently staying in California.

The two women were detained in March when they crossed into North Korea while filming a documentary at the North Korea-China border. Former U.S. president and husband of the secretary of state, Bill Clinton, secured the August fifth release of the reporters through a visit to Pyongyang.