List of ambassadors of the United States to South Korea

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Ambassador of the United States to South Korea
주한미국대사
Seal of the United States Department of State
Incumbent
Philip Goldberg
since July 12, 2022
Reports toU.S. Secretary of State
ResidenceHabib House
SeatSeoul, South Korea
NominatorThe President of the United States
AppointerThe President
with Senate advice and consent
Inaugural holderLucius H. Foote (as Envoy)
FormationMay 20, 1883
WebsiteU.S. Embassy - Korea

The United States ambassador to South Korea (Korean: 주한미국대사; Hanja: 駐韓美國大使) is the chief diplomatic representative of the United States accredited to the Republic of Korea. The ambassador's official title is "Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Korea."[1]

Korea[edit]

See also: Joseon and Korean Empire

After the United States–Korea Treaty of 1882 was negotiated, diplomatic representatives were sent from Washington to Seoul.[2] From then until 1905, there were several Envoys and Consuls General, each heading what was called a legation. After the Japanese had defeated the Chinese in 1895, and the Russians in 1905, Korea began to see its independence disappear. By 1910, Japan had annexed Korea and the U.S. no longer had a diplomatic presence in Korea.

Envoy, resident minister, and consul-general[edit]

Name Portrait Appointment Presentation Termination Appointer Notes
Lucius H. Foote February 27, 1883 May 20, 1883 February 19, 1885   Chester A. Arthur [3]
George Clayton Foulk (acting) February 19, 1885 June 12, 1886 (acting) Chargé d’Affaires ad interim
William Harwar Parker February 19, 1886 June 12, 1886 September 3, 1886   Grover Cleveland
George Clayton Foulk (acting) September 3, 1886 April 13, 1887 (acting) Chargé d’Affaires ad interim
Hugh A. Dinsmore January 12, 1887 April 13, 1887 May 26, 1890   William McKinley [4]
Augustine Heard January 30, 1890 May 26, 1890 June 27, 1893   [3]
John M. B. Sill January 12, 1894 April 30, 1894 September 13, 1897
Horace Newton Allen July 17, 1897 September 13, 1897 October 1, 1901
June 17, 1901 October 1, 1901 June 9, 1905 as Envoy
Edwin V. Morgan March 18, 1905 June 26, 1905 November 17, 1905 Theodore Roosevelt [5]

South Korea[edit]

At the end of World War II, U.S. forces accepted Japan's surrender in southern Korea, and Soviet forces accepted the surrender of the Japanese in northern Korea. Talks to agree upon a unity government for Korea failed, and in 1948, two separate Korean states were created: the Republic of Korea (South Korea) and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea). The United States established diplomatic relations with the new South Korean government, but did not recognize North Korea. Other countries, like the Soviet Union, recognized the Pyongyang government in North Korea, but did not initially establish relations with the South Korean government in Seoul.

The United States has maintained constant diplomatic relations with South Korea since 1948, with formal recognition of the Republic of Korea on 1 January 1949. The American special representative, John J. Muccio, became the first Ambassador to the Republic of Korea on March 1, 1949.[6]

The Embassy of the United States in Seoul has jurisdiction over APP Busan.

Ambassador[edit]

# Name Portrait Appointment Presentation Termination Appointer Notes
1 John J. Muccio April 7, 1949 April 20, 1949 September 8, 1952   Harry S. Truman [6]
2 Ellis O. Briggs August 25, 1952 November 25, 1952 April 12, 1955
3 William S. B. Lacy March 24, 1955 May 12, 1955 October 20, 1955   Dwight D. Eisenhower
4 Walter C. Dowling May 29, 1956 July 14, 1956 October 2, 1959 [7]
5 Walter P. McConaughy October 5, 1959 December 17, 1959 April 12, 1961 [8]
— Marshall Green (acting) April 12, 1961 June 27, 1961 (acting) Chargé d’Affaires ad interim
6 Samuel D. Berger June 12, 1961 June 27, 1961 July 10, 1964   John F. Kennedy [9]
7 Winthrop G. Brown July 31, 1964 August 14, 1964 June 10, 1967   Lyndon B. Johnson [10]
8 William J. Porter June 9, 1967 August 23, 1967 August 18, 1971 [11]
9 Philip C. Habib September 30, 1971 October 10, 1971 August 19, 1974   Richard Nixon [12]
10 Richard L. Sneider August 23, 1974 September 18, 1974 June 21, 1978   Gerald Ford
11 William H. Gleysteen Jr. June 27, 1978 July 24, 1978 June 10, 1981   Jimmy Carter [13]
12 Richard L. Walker July 18, 1981 August 12, 1981 October 25, 1986   Ronald Reagan
13 James R. Lilley October 16, 1986 November 26, 1986 January 3, 1989
14 Donald Gregg September 14, 1989 September 27, 1989 February 27, 1993   George H. W. Bush
— Raymond Burghardt (acting) February 27, 1993 November 2, 1993 (acting) Chargé d’Affaires ad interim
15 James T. Laney October 15, 1993 November 2, 1993 February 5, 1996   Bill Clinton
— Richard A. Christenson (acting) February 5, 1996 December 15, 1997 (acting) Chargé d’Affaires ad interim
16 Stephen W. Bosworth October 24, 1997 December 15, 1997 February 10, 2001 Bill Clinton [14]
— Evans Revere (acting) February 10, 2001 September 12, 2001 (acting) Chargé d’Affaires ad interim
17 Thomas C. Hubbard August 3, 2001 September 12, 2001 April 17, 2004   George W. Bush [15]
18 Christopher R. Hill May 12, 2004 September 1, 2004 April 12, 2005 [16]
— Mark C. Minton (acting) April 12, 2005 October 17, 2005 (acting) Chargé d’Affaires ad interim
19 Alexander R. Vershbow October 12, 2005 October 17, 2005 September 18, 2008 George W. Bush [17]
20 Kathleen Stephens August 4, 2008 October 6, 2008 October 23, 2011 [1]
21 Sung Kim October 13, 2011 November 25, 2011 October 24, 2014   Barack Obama [18]
22 Mark Lippert September 26, 2014 November 21, 2014 January 20, 2017 [19]
— Marc Knapper (acting) January 20, 2017 July 7, 2018 (acting) Chargé d’Affaires ad interim
23 Harry B. Harris Jr. June 29, 2018 July 25, 2018 January 20, 2021   Donald Trump [20]
— Robert G. Rapson (acting) January 20, 2021 July 15, 2021 (acting) Chargé d’Affaires ad interim
— Christopher Del Corso (acting) July 15, 2021 July 11, 2022 (acting)
24 Philip Goldberg May 5, 2022 July 12, 2022 Incumbent   Joe Biden [21]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ a b Embassy of the United States, Seoul, Ambassador Archived 2010-11-10 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Korean Mission to the Conference on the Limitation of Armament, Washington, D.C., 1921–1922. (1922). Korea's Appeal to the Conference on Limitation of Armament, pp. 29–32., p. 29, at Google Books
  3. ^ a b Korean Mission p. 32., p. 32, at Google Books
  4. ^ U.S. Congress, Dismore bio
  5. ^ Korean Mission p. 32, p. 32, at Google Books; note that Morgan's term was brief. He (a) presented credentials on June 26, 1905; (b) closed the Legation, November 28, 1905; and (c) left Seoul, December 8, 1905 after Japan took over responsibility for Korean foreign relations
  6. ^ a b Schnabel, James F. (1972). Policy and Direction: the First Year, p. 28., p. 28, at Google Books
  7. ^ Brazinsky, George. (2007). Nation Building in South Korea, pp. 105-106, p. 105, at Google Books
  8. ^ Brazinsky,pp. 111-112, p. 111, at Google Books
  9. ^ Brazinsky, pp. 118-120, p. 118, at Google Books
  10. ^ Brazinsky, p. 135, p. 135, at Google Books
  11. ^ Brazinsky, pp. 150-160, p. 150, at Google Books
  12. ^ Brazinsky, p. 126, p. 126, at Google Books
  13. ^ Brazinsky, p. 226, p. 226, at Google Books
  14. ^ Funabashi, Yōichi. (2007). The Peninsula Question: a Chronicle of the Second Korean Nuclear Crisis, p. 225-226., p. 225, at Google Books
  15. ^ Funabashi, p. 108., p. 108, at Google Books
  16. ^ Funabashi, p. 372., p. 372, at Google Books
  17. ^ Funabashi, p. 176., p. 176, at Google Books
  18. ^ Josh Rogin (October 13, 2011). "U.S. Ambassador to South Korea finally confirmed". Foreign Policy. Archived from the original on October 16, 2011. Retrieved October 13, 2011.
  19. ^ Chang, Jae-soon (October 25, 2014). "Obama makes surprise appearance at swearing-in ceremony for new U.S. ambassador to Seoul". Yonhap News.
  20. ^ auto-generated from a syndicated feed (July 1, 2018). "Harry Harris sworn in as new envoy to S Korea". Business-standard.com. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
  21. ^ "Ambassador Philip S. Goldberg". July 10, 2022.

References[edit]

External links[edit]

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