Life Summary
Wi Sung-lac is the inaugural director of the Office of National Security (ONS) and chairman of the Standing Committee of the National Security Council (NSC) under the Lee Jae-myung government.

He was born in Jangheung, South Jeolla Province, on September 14, 1954, according to the lunar calendar.

He graduated from Namsung High School in North Jeolla Province and Seoul National University with a degree in diplomacy.

He earned a master's degree in diplomacy from the Graduate School of Seoul National University and a doctorate in international politics from the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

He entered public service after passing the 13th Foreign Service Examination and worked as first secretary at the Korean missions in Geneva and Russia and as director of the Eastern Europe Division.

After serving as an administrative officer in the Office of the Senior Secretary to the President for Foreign Affairs and National Security under the Kim Young-sam government, he worked as a counselor at the Korean Embassy in the United States and as director-general for North American Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

After serving as policy coordinator at the Policy Coordination Office of the National Security Council and as minister for political affairs at the Korean Embassy in the United States, he was appointed in 2009 as special representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs and concurrently served as South Korea's chief negotiator to the Six-Party Talks on the North Korean nuclear issue.

After leaving public service following his tenure as ambassador to Russia in 2011, he served as a visiting professor at the Department of Political Science and International Relations of his alma mater, Seoul National University.

He entered politics by serving as chairman of the Pragmatic Diplomacy Committee of the Democratic Party of Korea's 20th Presidential Election Central Campaign Committee and as secretary-general of the Korea Peace Foundation. He was elected to the 22nd National Assembly through proportional representation and served on the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee and the Intelligence Committee.

In the 21st presidential election, he oversaw candidate Lee Jae-myung's “pragmatic diplomacy” strategy as his foreign affairs and security adviser.

In June 2025, he was appointed the first director of the Office of National Security, a minister-level post, and chairman of the Standing Committee of the National Security Council under the Lee Jae-myung government.

He is regarded as President Lee Jae-myung's “foreign affairs and security strategist” and as a leading expert on North America, the North Korean nuclear issue and Russia.

He is a calm and cautious strategist who pushes through principles once established with conviction and determination.

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