Mark C. Minton is a career member of the Foreign Service

United States Foreign Service

The United States Foreign Service is a component of the United States federal government under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of approximately 11,500 professionals carrying out the foreign policy of the United States and aiding U.S...

 and was the U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia

Mongolia

Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...

 from 2006 to 2009.

Career

Minton began his Foreign Service career as a Political Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

 in 1977. He served on the Policy Planning Staff in Washington, D.C., followed by an assignment with the Office of Soviet Union Affairs. In 1984, he became the Consul General in Sapporo, Japan. He has served in subsequent assignments with the Department of State’s Executive Secretariat, as a Pearson Fellow with the United States Senate, and as Deputy Director, Japanese Affairs, at the Department of State.

In 1992, Minton became the Minister-Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, after which he returned to Washington as the Director of Korean Affairs. In 1998, he was appointed Minister-Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations

United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

, followed by a year as Diplomat-in-Residence at the City College of New York.

Before becoming Ambassador to Mongolia, Minton was Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul

Seoul

Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...

, Republic of Korea. During his assignment in Seoul, he acted for over six months as Chargé d’Affaires ad interim.

Minton graduated from Columbia University

Columbia University

Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...

 with a B.A. in Literature and received his Master's degree in History from Yale University

Yale University

Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...

. He speaks Japanese and Korean. He also is a veteran of the United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

, having served for three years.

In May 2010 Minton was named president of the Korea Society

Korea Society

The Korea Society is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan, 501 organization with individual and corporate members that is dedicated solely to the promotion of greater awareness, understanding and cooperation between the people of the United States and Korea...

.