His Excellency Hong Seok-in presented his credentials to His Majesty King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands on 28 May 2025 as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Korea to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Ambassador Hong was born on 28 January 1967. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in French Language and Literature from Korea University in Seoul, obtained in 1992. In 1993, he passed the High Diplomatic Service Examination and joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea, beginning a distinguished diplomatic career spanning more than three decades.
Throughout his career, Ambassador Hong has held numerous diplomatic postings abroad and senior positions within the Korean government. Early in his diplomatic service, he served as First Secretary at the Embassy of Korea in Belgium and the Korean Mission to the European Union, followed by a posting as Counsellor at the Embassy of Korea in Ghana. He later served at the Embassy of Korea in the United States, first as Counsellor and subsequently as Minister.
Ambassador Hong also gained experience in complex diplomatic environments as Minister-Counsellor at the Embassy of Korea in Libya. In 2021, he was appointed Consul-General of the Republic of Korea in Honolulu, United States.
Within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Hong has held a number of senior leadership roles. He served as Director of the Korean Peninsula Peace Regime Division, Director of the Public Diplomacy Division, and later as Director-General for Public Diplomacy and Cultural Affairs. He also worked at the Office of the President and at the Office of National Security, contributing to key policy coordination at the highest levels of government.
In July 2023, he was appointed Ambassador and Deputy Minister for Public Diplomacy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, further strengthening Korea’s global engagement and international cultural outreach.
Ambassador Hong assumed his current position as Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the Kingdom of the Netherlands in April 2025, continuing his commitment to advancing bilateral relations and cooperation between Korea and the Netherlands.
