Philippe Lafortune, Ambassador of Canada to the Republic of Korea

Biography

H.E. Philippe Lafortune arrived in Seoul in August 2025. He presented his Credentials to the President of the Republic of Korea on September 29, 2025, marking his official appointment as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Canada to the Republic of Korea. He succeeds Ms. Tamara Mawhinney.

Ambassador Lafortune brings a wealth of experience in international relations and national security.

From 2004 to 2009, he held several positions within the Department of National Defence, including as a Policy Officer and Recruitment Programme Manager.

In 2009, he was posted to the Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations in New York City where, as First Secretary, he was responsible for files relating to UN Peacekeeping policies and financial affairs.

From 2011 to 2013, he served as Senior Policy Advisor (POLAD) at the Canadian Joint Operations Command (CJOC). In this role, he was responsible for providing advice on issues associated with domestic operations, continental defence and NORAD, and Canadian Armed Forces engagements in the Americas.

In 2013, he was appointed Acting Director NATO Policy, in the Department of National Defence, responsible for managing both defence policy issues relating to the Alliance, and Canada’s bilateral defence relations with European countries. In 2015, he became National Defence Director Parliamentary Affairs, responsible for all National Defence interactions with the Canadian Parliament. In 2018, He was promoted to Deputy Director General International Security Policy, responsible for providing policy advice on international and domestic military operations and NATO issues.

In 2020, he joined the Privy Council Office as Director, Strategic Policy and Planning, where he was responsible for providing policy advice on key issues relating to the Canadian Security and Intelligence community.

In 2022, he became the Director General for the Intelligence Bureau at Global Affairs Canada, a position that he held until his nomination as the Ambassador-designate of Canada to the Republic of Korea in 2025.

Ambassador Lafortune holds a Bachelor’s Honours degree in Political Science (2001) from the Université de Montréal and a Master’s degree in International Relations (2005) from Université Laval.