was a Japanese politician who served as

ambassador to the United States The following table lists ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident repre ...

and ambassador to

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northe ...

Diplomatic career

Horinouchi was a member of the Japanese delegation at the

1919 Paris Peace Conference Events January * January 1 ** The Czechoslovak Legions occupy much of the self-proclaimed "free city" of Pressburg (now Bratislava), enforcing its incorporation into the new republic of Czechoslovakia. ** HMY ''Iolaire'' sinks off the ...

, and later noted that "Japan was totally absorbed in its own issues" at said conference. During the 1930s, he served as vice minister of foreign affairs and as a councillor at the

Embassy of Japan in Washington, D.C. is the diplomatic mission of Japan to the United States. It is located at 2520 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, D.C., in the Embassy Row neighborhood. In addition to serving as Japan's diplomatic mission in the United States, the embassy pr ...

He served as

consul general A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...

in New York during the early 1930s. In October 1938, Horinouchi was announced as the successor to Hiroshi Saitō as

. He took office in April 1939. He was recalled from the post in 1940, and was criticised for apparently failing to promote Japanese interests in relation to the trading of

aviation gasoline Avgas (aviation gasoline, also known as aviation spirit in the UK) is an aviation fuel used in aircraft with spark-ignited internal combustion engines. ''Avgas'' is distinguished from conventional gasoline (petrol) used in motor vehicles, whi ...

. Despite this, he continued to be engaged in diplomatic relations between the two countries. In 1955, Horinouchi was appointed Japanese ambassador to

, succeeding

Kenkichi Yoshizawa was a Japanese diplomat in the Empire of Japan, serving as 46th Foreign Minister of Japan in 1932. He was the maternal grandfather of Sadako Ogata, the former United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees from 1991–2001. Biography Yoshizawa ...

on his retirement. He resigned from the position in 1959.

Other work

In 1946, Horinouchi was elected the first chairman of Licensed Agencies for Relief in Asia (LARA), which gave the organisation contacts and relevance in Japan.

Personal life

Horinouchi was a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

References

{{Authority control 1886 births 1979 deaths Ambassadors of Japan to the United States Ambassadors of Japan to Taiwan Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920) Consuls General of Japan in New York