SEOUL– Philip Goldberg, the new U.S. ambassador to South Korea, submitted a copy of his credentials to Seoul’s foreign ministry Tuesday, effectively beginning his official activity in the position.
Goldberg, who arrived here Sunday, visited the ministry’s headquarters in the capital city to hand in the copy to its chief of protocol in advance of presenting it to President Yoon Suk-yeol. The date for a related ceremony to be held at the presidential office in the central district of Yongsan has yet to be announced.
In 2018, his predecessor, Harry Harris, presented then President Moon Jae-in with his credentials 18 days after his arrival to assume the post. Usually, South Korea’s presidential office groups together new foreign ambassadors in the nation for such a event.
The envoy then headed to the Japanese Embassy’s information and culture center in Seoul to pay tribute to former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was assassinated during a political campaign speech in Nara, Japan, last week.
Later in the day, Goldberg paid an introductory courtesy call on Foreign Minister Park Jin and vowed to closely work with the Seoul government to develop “a global strategic partnership” based on “shared democratic values” between the allies.
“The alliance between the United States and Korea has been and continues to be a bedrock of security here in the Korean peninsula, and also in the region and has helped maintain the peace of the region for many decades,” Goldberg said during the meeting.
He is Washington’s first ambassador to Seoul under the Joe Biden administration, as he filled the post that had been vacant for 1 1/2 years since the departure of Harris.
Goldberg, a veteran diplomat, previously served as ambassador to Colombia after working as a coordinator for implementation of U.N. Security Council resolutions on North Korea from 2009-10.
Source: Yonhap News Agency