Consul General

Mr. Henry S. Bensurto Jr. assumed the post of Consul General of the Philippine Consulate General in Seattle on 22 January 2026, with consular jurisdiction over the states of Washington, Alaska, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana.

A career diplomat, lawyer, educator, and distinguished member of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, Consul General Bensurto is widely recognized as one of the Philippines’ foremost experts on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), maritime security, and the West Philippine Sea. He was a member of the Philippine legal and diplomatic team that initiated and advanced the landmark arbitration case against China concerning the West Philippine Sea, which culminated in the historic 2016 Arbitral Award. 

Prior to his current assignment in Seattle, he served as Ambassador of the Philippines to the Republic of Türkiye from 2024 to January 2026. He also previously served as Consul General of the Philippines in San Francisco from 2014 to 2020.

In Manila, Consul General Bensurto held several senior leadership positions within the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), including Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs and Assistant Secretary of the West Philippine Sea Center. He also served as Secretary-General of the Commission on Maritime and Ocean Affairs Secretariat (CMOAS), the cabinet-level inter-agency body tasked with coordinating Philippine policy on the law of the sea and other maritime affairs. 

Throughout his distinguished public service career, Consul General Bensurto has received national recognition for his pioneering work in advancing Philippine maritime security and protecting the country’s sovereign rights and interests in the West Philippine Sea and South China Sea. In recognition of his significant contributions to Philippine foreign policy, he was awarded the Presidential Order of Lakandula with the rank of Grand Officer, one of the highest honors conferred by the Philippine Government. He also received the Presidential Award of Gawad Mabini with the rank of Commander for his leadership and contributions to the enactment of the Philippine Archipelagic Baselines Law in 2009. 

Consul General Bensurto earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of the Philippines in 1985 and his Bachelor of Laws degree from San Beda College of Law in 1990. He pursued advanced studies at University of Oxford, where he graduated in 1996 with Distinction in Public International Law and Merit in International Trade.