The South Korean government is considering building an embassy district in Sejong, aiming to encourage foreign missions to relocate ahead of the Foreign Ministry's planned move to the city in 2031. Persuading diplomats from 118 countries to leave embassies and residences in Seoul — some with histories spanning decades, and in several cases more than a century — is expected to be difficult. Officials are likely to look to Canberra, where Australia's parliament, its foreign and trade ministry and major embassies sit within walking distance of one another, creating a natural basis for day-to-day contact.
Australia Leased Diplomatic Land for 99 Years
A government source said on the 19th that authorities are weighing options including an embassy complex in Sejong as part of the Foreign Ministry's relocation, adding that a decision will be made through consultations with the ministry. Under the second phase of the central government relocation plan announced on the 13th, the Foreign Ministry is set to move to Sejong around 2031, after revisions to the special law on the Multifunctional Administrative City and the construction of a new building.
All 118 diplomatic missions in Korea are currently located in Seoul, excluding 11 consulates general in cities such as Busan and Jeju Special Self-Governing Province. A diplomat from a major country stationed in Korea said embassies would have little choice but to follow if the Foreign Ministry moves to Sejong. That prospect is behind the idea of creating a diplomatic enclave for them, following examples abroad.
When Australia moved its capital from Melbourne to Canberra, it developed a diplomatic precinct in the suburb of Yarralumla and leased sites there to foreign governments for 99 years. The resulting embassy row sits directly next to Australia's Parliament House and its foreign and trade ministry, an arrangement widely seen as making communication more efficient rather than less. It is an example that aligns with the rationale for relocating public institutions — strengthening policy coordination and collaboration around Sejong.
Some argue that moving embassies will be harder than moving government agencies. The U.S. Embassy has leased a building in Gwanghwamun since 1968, but in 2021 it finalized plans to move to the former U.S. military base site in Yongsan and has been pursuing the relocation since. If the Foreign Ministry leaves for Sejong in 2031, however, that Yongsan plan could be put on hold.
China, Britain and France are among the missions expected to face difficulties, either because of their long histories or the symbolic weight of the embassy buildings themselves. The Chinese Embassy in Seoul's Myeong-dong, for example, stands on the site where Qing troops were garrisoned during the Imo Incident of 1882, and it later served as the Qing legation and the Republic of China's consulate general until Seoul and Beijing established diplomatic ties in 1992. The compound, covering about 9,831.8 square meters, now houses an office building and staff quarters.
Major Embassies Dating to the Late 19th Century — Can Sejong Create New Symbolism?
The British Embassy in Jeong-dong traces its history to the establishment of the British legation in Korea in 1884. France set up a legation in Jeong-dong after the 1886 treaty of friendship and commerce between the two countries, then moved in 1910 to its current location on Seosomun-ro in Seodaemun-gu. The Kim Chung-up Hall, designed by the architect Kim Chung-up and completed in 1962, is a particular source of pride for the French Embassy.
An official at another major embassy said the problem is that residences for the ambassador and deputy chief of mission would have to move as well, not just the embassy. The hanok-style U.S. ambassador's residence in Jeong-dong, for instance, was bought by Gen. Lucius Harwood Foote, who arrived as the first U.S. minister plenipotentiary to Korea after the 1882 treaty of peace, amity, commerce and navigation, and was later sold to the U.S. government. It served as the U.S. legation and consulate before being used from the 1950s as a guest house and then the ambassador's residence. Giving up more than a century of history at the site to move into a newly built property in Sejong could itself be a loss. The same applies to other countries' ambassadorial residences, most of them in affluent Seoul neighborhoods such as Seongbuk-dong and Hannam-dong.
In return, an embassy complex in Sejong could build a symbolism of its own. The diplomatic precinct in Canberra's Yarralumla is regarded as a showcase for traditional architecture from around the world. The U.S. Embassy there was built in a Georgian style evoking a brick-built White House, using locally produced red brick and other materials to blend with its surroundings. The Chinese Embassy is known for Chinese-style roof tiles laid by artisans brought from China, and the Indonesian Embassy for its Javanese-style pendopo, or open pavilion. Tourists visit Yarralumla to see the buildings, and guided tours of the diplomatic precinct have emerged.
Even if embassies move to Sejong, they are expected to keep consular offices in Seoul. More than half of the country's 2.78 million foreign residents, as of the end of last year, are concentrated in the capital region, and the number of foreign tourists visiting Seoul is approaching 20 million a year. Consular work such as passport and visa services and protection of nationals will have to remain based in the city, observers say.