The consuls general assigned to Hawai'i by the Japanese and South Korean governments will both be moving on to new assignments next month.

Masatoshi Muto, the Japanese consul general, is leaving his Hawai'i post to go to South Korea, officially known as the Republic of Korea, where he will be envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary at the Embassy of Japan.

Muto has been in Hawai'i since late 2002.

Also leaving is Choi Heung-sik, the consul general from South Korea. Choi has served here since early 2003.

He will return to Seoul, where he will serve as an ambassador-at-large in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A consul is a diplomat appointed by a government to reside in a foreign country and represent its interest and assist its citizens there. A consulate acts like a mini-embassy, dealing with diplomatic tasks such as the issuing of visas.

The significant number of Japanese- and Korean-Americans living in Hawai'i, as well as the large number of Japanese and Korean nationals who travel here, make the two consulates busy places.

Japan and South Korea are two of about a half-dozen countries that have established rotating career consuls general in Hawai'i, according to John Henry Felix, who serves as honorary consul general to Portugal and honorary vice consul general to Spain.

Most career consuls serve between 26 months and three years in any location before being reassigned, Felix said.

About 35 other countries are served by honorary consuls or consuls general, who, like Felix, are U.S. residents living in Hawai'i, he said.

The departures of Muto and Choi "will be a tremendous loss to their respective constituencies and to the community as a whole," Felix said.

Since early this year, Choi has served as dean of the Consular Corps of Hawai'i, an organization that consists of career and honorary consuls general in Hawai'i.

Choi said he was pleased to have served in Hawai'i when he did.

"I'm very happy because during my tenure, we celebrated our centennial in Hawai'i," he said. Beyond that, Choi said, he was here when Americans and South Koreans celebrated the 50th anniversary of the military alliance between the two countries.

Earlier this year, he said, Gov. Linda Lingle visited South Korea, while last year, South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun spent several days in Hawai'i.

His main goal during his tenure here has been "strengthening the relationship between the people of Hawai'i and Korea," Choi said.

"Hawai'i is such a key strategic point and the gateway to United States."

Muto said that during his time in Hawai'i, he learned to appreciate the state's unique multi-ethnic background and the incorporation of Japanese culture into that mix.

Muto also said that while he had heard of the reputation of Hawai'i's people, "it was not until my arrival that I soon realized how genuinely friendly and open the people of Hawai'i are."

Promoting exchanges between Hawai'i and Japan has been his major goal as consul general, Muto said. "We have supported various student exchanges, cultural events, sports exchanges — all in the hopes of encouraging mutual understanding."

The state can get Japanese visitors to keep coming to Hawai'i by promoting its unique culture and by investing in guest facilities and services, Muto said.

Replacements for both Choi and Muto have yet to be announced.

Earlier this year, the Filipino Consulate also lost its consul general when Rolando Gregorio retired.

Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com.