The United States ambassador to South Korea () is the chief diplomatic representative of the United States accredited to the

Republic of Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

. The ambassador's official title is "Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Korea."Embassy of the United States, Seoul
Ambassador

Korea

After the United States–Korea Treaty of 1882 was negotiated, diplomatic representatives were sent from Washington to

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

.Korean Mission to the Conference on the Limitation of Armament, Washington, D.C., 1921–1922. (1922). 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

South Korea

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

(South Korea) and the

Democratic People's Republic of Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

(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 Pyongyang () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is sometimes labeled as the "Capital of the Revolution" (). Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. Accordi ...

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.Schnabel, James F. (1972). The Embassy of the United States in Seoul has jurisdiction over APP Busan.

Ambassador

Notes

References

* Brazinsky, George. (2007). ''Nation Building in South Korea:Koreans, Americans, and the Making of a Democracy.'' Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press.
OCLC 263714059
* Funabashi, Yōichi. (2007). ''The Peninsula Question: a Chronicle of the Second Korean Nuclear Crisis.'' Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution Press.
OCLC 156811113
* Halleck, Henry Wager. (1861)
''International law: or, Rules regulating the intercourse of states in peace and war''
New York: D. Van Nostrand
OCLC 852699
* 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.'' Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office
OCLC 12923609
* Schnabel, James F. (1972). ''Policy and Direction: the First Year,'' Vol. 3 of ''United States Army in the Korean War.'' Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office.

External links

United States Department of State: Chiefs of Mission for Korea

United States Department of State: South Korea

United States Embassy in Seoul
{{US Ambassadors to Korea

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...