Tales from the Motherland: Korea and the Power of Small

Robert Ogburn has held the title of Minister-Counselor for Public Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul since September 2014.  He joined the U.S. Foreign Service in 1987 and has served in Iraq, Korea, Vietnam, Washington and Egypt. 

Prior to Seoul, Robert was Deputy Consul General at the U.S. Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City from 2011 to 2014. From 2009 to 2010, Robert was the State Department's senior advisor for rule of law at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, where he focused on inter-agency and provincial coordination of the Mission's rule of law efforts. Robert has held five previous jobs in Korea, including Spokesman and Counselor for Public Affairs.  

In addition to serving in Iraq, he considers his career highlights to be re-opening the U.S. diplomatic post in Busan, Korea in 2007; running the White House press filing centers during presidential visits to various countries; and, from 2001 to 2005 bringing some of the first cultural and performing arts programs to southern Vietnam since the end of the War. In Seoul, he has been the chairman of one of the world's largest bi-national Fulbright Commissions and he also introduced the State Department's first-ever FabLab Fellow and other innovative sports and cultural diplomacy programs. 

Robert has an M.A. in East Asian Studies from the George Washington University, B.A. '85, and an MBA from Johns Hopkins University.