Representative office of Australia, Ramallah

The Australian Representative Office, Ramallah (Arabic: ممثلية أستراليا في رام الله) is the Australian Government's foremost diplomatic presence to the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah. The office is headed by the Australian Representative to the Palestinian Authority, who is an officer of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The Representative, since April 2022, is Edward Russell.

Australian Representative to the Palestinian Authority
Incumbent
Edward Russell
since 12 April 2022 (2022-04-12)
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
StyleHis Excellency
Reports toMinister for Foreign Affairs
NominatorPrime Minister of Australia
AppointerGovernor General of Australia
Formation23 August 2000
WebsiteAustralian Representative Office, Ramallah

On 23 August 2000 Australian Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, announced that the Australian Government would open an Australian Representative Office in the West Bank city of Ramallah, to manage relations with the Palestinian Authority. Speaking of the importance of such an office, Downer said, "At this critical moment in the history of the contemporary Middle East, it is important for Australia to be closely informed of developments, to strengthen its relations with all key parties, and to play a positive and constructive part in support of negotiations to secure a just and comprehensive peace. The decision to establish the Australian Representative Office represents a significant step toward meeting that need."[1] The office opened on 6 September 2000.

List of Representatives

#OfficeholderTerm start dateTerm end dateTime in officeNotes
1Steven Pinhorn30 November 2000 (2000-11-30)31 August 2003 (2003-08-31)1–2 years[2]
2Glenn Miles2003 (2003)unknownunknown
3unknownunknown2007 (2007)unknown
4Ben Scott2007 (2007)December 2009 (2009-12)1–2 years
5Jenny Grant–CurnowJanuary 2010 (2010-01)December 2012 (2012-12)2 years, 11 months
6Tom WilsonJanuary 2013 (2013-01)December 2015 (2015-12)2 years, 11 months
7Marcia PiusJanuary 2016 (2016-01)2019 (2019)2–3 years
8Mark BaileyJune 2019 (2019-06)2022 (2022)2–3 years
9Edward Russell12 April 2022 (2022-04-12)Incumbent2 years, 88 days[3]

See also

References