07 February 2012
Amman - Australia's Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd announced that Ms Heidi Venamore PSM will be Australia's next Ambassador to Jordan.
Ms Venamore is expected to take up her appointment next month and will replace Mr Glenn White, who has been Ambassador since January 2009.
Rudd said Australia and Jordan enjoy a long history of friendship and cooperation with valuable historical links dating back to the First World War when Australians served as part of the Allied forces in the region, including in modern-day Jordan.
He added that this partnership has broadened and deepened over the years to encompass trade, agriculture, investment, education, defence cooperation and over 50 years of cultural cooperation, including on archaeological research. Recent new areas of bilateral cooperation include law enforcement, such as regional police training, and customs cooperation. Bilateral merchandise trade stood at $189 million for 2010-11.
The minister said that Australia has also cooperated with Jordan on addressing the problem of land mines, and has helped to clear more than 130,000 landmines land mines from Jordan's northern border with Syria.
Ms Venamore is a career officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). She holds a Masters degree in International Law from Cambridge University (FCO Chevening Scholarship), Bachelors of Arts and Law from the University of Queensland and a Graduate Diploma in Foreign Affairs and Trade from the Australian National University. Ms Venamore has studied Arabic and has worked throughout the Middle East.
Amman - Australia's Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd announced that Ms Heidi Venamore PSM will be Australia's next Ambassador to Jordan.
Ms Venamore is expected to take up her appointment next month and will replace Mr Glenn White, who has been Ambassador since January 2009.
Rudd said Australia and Jordan enjoy a long history of friendship and cooperation with valuable historical links dating back to the First World War when Australians served as part of the Allied forces in the region, including in modern-day Jordan.
He added that this partnership has broadened and deepened over the years to encompass trade, agriculture, investment, education, defence cooperation and over 50 years of cultural cooperation, including on archaeological research. Recent new areas of bilateral cooperation include law enforcement, such as regional police training, and customs cooperation. Bilateral merchandise trade stood at $189 million for 2010-11.
The minister said that Australia has also cooperated with Jordan on addressing the problem of land mines, and has helped to clear more than 130,000 landmines land mines from Jordan's northern border with Syria.
Ms Venamore is a career officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). She holds a Masters degree in International Law from Cambridge University (FCO Chevening Scholarship), Bachelors of Arts and Law from the University of Queensland and a Graduate Diploma in Foreign Affairs and Trade from the Australian National University. Ms Venamore has studied Arabic and has worked throughout the Middle East.
© Jordan News Agency - Petra 2012
