Dr Jin Park

Dr. Jin Park served as the 40th Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea (2022–2024) and is currently a Senior Advisor at Kim & Chang law office and a Distinguished Invited Professor at KAIST, where he teaches “Science Diplomacy.”

He began his public career as a young diplomat at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and later served as Presidential Secretary for Press Affairs and Secretary for Political Affairs under the Kim Young-sam administration (1993–1998). He was subsequently elected to the National Assembly, where he served four terms (2002-2012 and 2020-2024) representing the central Jongno and Gangnam districts in metropolitan Seoul.

During his legislative career, he served on several key committees, including the Science, Technology, Information and Communications Committee; the National Defense Committee; the Intelligence Oversight Committee; the Foreign Affairs, Trade and Unification Committee; and the Knowledge Economy Committee.

Notably, he served as Chairman of the Foreign Affairs, Trade and Unification Committee (2008–2010), where he led the passage of major legislation, including the ROK–U.S. Free Trade Agreement (FTA), the Korea–EU FTA, and the North Korean Human Rights Act. He was also actively engaged in global parliamentary diplomacy in the America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.

He passed the Korean National Foreign Service Examination and earned his LL.B. from Seoul National University, an M.P.A. from the Harvard Kennedy School, and an LL.M. from New York University School of Law. He also received a D.Phil. in Politics from St Antony’s College, University of Oxford. He was a MacArthur Foundation Fellow at King’s College London and taught East Asian politics and international relations at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne.

Back in Korea, He served as the President of the Oxford Korean Alumni Association and is the Honorary Founding President of the Oxbridge Society Korea. He also served as Chairman of the Korea-Britain Society and was honored as a Distinguished Friend of Oxford. In September 2013, He was awarded an honorary CBE by the Queen Elizabeth II in recognition of his distinguished contributions to strengthening Korea–United Kingdom relations.

He is a member of the New York Bar and served as a lieutenant in the Republic of Korea Navy. He is married to a violinist, Yoon-hee Cho who is the Chairperson of the Korean Chamber Orchestra, and has two children.