The US ambassador to South Korea is in a hairy situation when it comes to maintaining diplomatic relations.
The aptly named envoy, Harry Harris, is getting flak for sporting a mustache — a look that some Koreans find offensive and critics say is reminiscent of oppressive governors-general when Korea was under Japanese rule between 1910 and 1945.
Harris, the highly decorated 40-year US Navy veteran who was nominated by President Trump and confirmed to the post in June, defended his facial hair in an interview last week with the Korea Times.
“I wanted to make a break between my life as a military officer and my new life as a diplomat,” he told the publication in the wide-ranging interview. “I tried to get taller but I couldn’t grow any taller, and so I tried to get younger but I couldn’t get younger. But I could grow a mustache, so I did that.”
Born in Japan to a Japanese mother and a father who served in the US Navy, Harris further staved off criticism about his appearance.
“There are many Korean independence leaders that have mustaches, but no one seems to focus on that,” he said. “I am who I am. All I can say is that every decision I make is based on the fact that I’m American ambassador to Korea, not the Japanese American ambassador to Korea.”
Harris, who was clean-shaven when he headed the US Pacific Command prior to his ambassadorship, said he wasn’t sure if he’d consider shaving off his ‘stache to improve US-Korea relations.
“You would have to convince me that somehow the mustache is viewed in a way that hurts our relationship,” he said.