The Minister of Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop announced on Wednesday John Griffin as Australia’s next Ambassador to Greece with non-resident accreditation to Bulgaria and Romania.
Mr Griffin is a senior career officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and is currently Assistant Secretary in the Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe Branch. He was Australia’s Ambassador to Hungary and Romania from 2011-2013. He has previously served overseas as Deputy Head of Mission at the Australian Embassy in Bangkok, and was First Secretary then Counsellor at the Australian
Mission to the United Nations in New York, with earlier postings to Laos and France.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts with first class honours and University Medal from James Cook University. He also studied at the French National School of Administration in Paris.
Announcing the appointment of Mr Griffin the foreign Minister stressed that “Australia and Greece enjoy a warm bilateral relationship based on strong and enduring community links, important historical bonds and shared democratic values”.
Ms Bishop also praised the vital role that the Greek Australian Community is playing in strengthening even further this relationship by saying “The depth of the relationship is further strengthened by Australia’s large and active Greek community, which enriches our society through its contributions to business, tourism, educational and cultural exchanges.”
Mr Griffin is expected to take up his appointment in July replacing Ms Jenny Bloomfield.
