High Commissioner to Cyprus

Today I announce the appointment of Mr Samuel Beever as Australia's next High Commissioner to Cyprus.

Australia and Cyprus enjoy a warm relationship based on close community links. Tens of thousands of Australians of Cypriot background make a valuable and dynamic contribution to our country.

Australia's relationship with Cyprus is founded on our shared values and commitment to democracy, human rights and the rule of law. We have excellent cooperation in multilateral forums, such as the United Nations and the Commonwealth, to protect and advance these values. We also continue to support efforts to achieve a just, viable and peaceful re-unification of Cyprus as mandated in UN Security Council resolutions.

Mr Beever is a career officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. He was most recently Director, Japan Section. He has previously served overseas as Vice President, then President, World Food Programme Executive Board, Rome; Counsellor and Alternate Permanent Representative to the World Food Programme; and Head of Aid, Australian Embassy, Kabul. In Canberra he has served as Pacific Adviser and Departmental Liaison Officer, Office of the Minister for Foreign Affairs; and Director, Corporate Strategy and Budget Section, AusAID.

Mr Beever holds a Master of International Humanitarian Affairs from the University of York and a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Asian Studies from the Australian National University.

I thank previous High Commissioner Alan Sweetman for his contributions to advancing Australia's interests in Cyprus since 2015.