The US ambassador to South Korea is in a stable condition after he was slashed on the face and wrist by a man wielding a 10in knife who called for the rival Koreas to be unified, officials have said.

Mark Lippert was attacked during a breakfast meeting at a performing arts centre in Seoul on Thursday morning, and doctors said he was left with an 11cm (4-inch) gash on the side of his face by an assailant using a small fruit knife.

Dramatic images showed Mr Lippert, 42, leaving the scene with blood pouring from his face and hand, as well as the chaotic scene at the blood-splattered breakfast table.

Police in South Korea have identified the man responsible for attacking US ambassador Mark Lippert as 55-year-old Korean nationalist Kim Ki-jong.

Kim is a member of the pro-unification group that hosted Thursday’s event.

Kim is a member of the pro-unification group that hosted Thursday’s event. Witnesses say he called for the reunification of Korea and condemned US-South Korean military exercises, which started this week, before launching his attack on Lippert.

Kim was arrested in 2010 for trying to attack the Japanese ambassador to South Korea.

Forty-two-year-old Lippert became ambassador to South Korea last year. He served as a foreign policy aide to President Barack Obama when Obama was a US senator.

Doctors said his condition was stable after undergoing “very successful” surgery, and that the cut to his wrist had caused nerve damage that was repaired. He is expected to stay in hospital for three to four days.