Bahk Eun-ji has been with The Korea Times since 2012, building a career across multiple desks. She began at the Business Desk, where she conducted in-depth interviews with key figures in Korea's corporate world. Later, she moved to the Politics & City Desk, focusing on education policy and social affairs. She later served as team leader of the digital content team, leading curation efforts on the newspaper’s homepage and reshaping print stories for social media audiences to enhance digital reach. Now back on the Politics Desk, she covers the National Assembly and the Ministry of National Defense, with a renewed focus on political developments.
Lee administration appoints ambassador to Japan
Lee Hyuk / Korea Times file
By Bahk Eun-ji
Lee Hyuk, head of the Korea-Japan Future Forum, formally assumed his post as Korea’s ambassador to Japan on Friday, becoming the first envoy to Tokyo under the Lee Jae Myung administration.
Born in 1958, Lee passed the 13th foreign service examination and is regarded as one of Seoul’s leading experts on Japan. He has held key diplomatic positions, such as first secretary, counselor and minister at the Korean Embassy in Tokyo, as well as director of the Northeast Asia division and director-general for Asia-Pacific affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Following his retirement from the ministry, he continued to work on bilateral exchanges, serving as head of the Korea-Japan Future Forum, which promotes dialogue among lawmakers, journalists, scholars and diplomats from both countries. According to observers, his pragmatic approach to bilateral issues is expected to align with the Lee administration’s emphasis on practical diplomacy driven by national interests.
Upon taking office, Lee is expected to address a number of high-profile issues, including the planned visit of outgoing Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to Busan later this month, and the selection of a new Japanese prime minister in early October.
Lee's appointment is widely seen as signaling Seoul's determination to stabilize ties with Tokyo while navigating sensitive regional developments.
In a recent interview with The Korea Times, Koichi Mizushima, Japan’s ambassador to Korea, signaled a desire for stability ahead of the country’s forthcoming leadership transition — part of a broader effort to project continuity in the diplomatic order of Northeast Asia.