Kevin Magee

Kevin Magee is an Adjunct Fellow at the Australia-China Relations Institute at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS:ACRI).

Mr Magee is a former Australian ambassador and senior Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) official. He had a 34-year career in DFAT during which he was the Australian Representative in Taipei (2011-2014), Ambassador to Saudi Arabia (2008-2011) and Consul-General in Guangzhou (2003-2007). He also served as Deputy Head of Mission in Moscow (2001-2003) and Chargé d’affaires to Russia (2016) and was posted to Singapore as First Secretary (1994-1997) and Beijing as Third Secretary (1990-1992).

During his career with DFAT, among other jobs Mr Magee headed up the areas dealing with both China and with Russia. He also led the Taskforce that established the National Foundation for Australia China Relations and was the interim CEO of that organisation.

Mr Magee has a strong interest in Asia, in particular with China, since his first visit to the People’s Republic of China during the northern winter of 1985-86 where he taught conversational English at the South West China Normal University in Bei Pei Chongqing. He studied Mandarin at both the Beijing Foreign Languages Institute in 1988 and the Taipei Language Institute in 1989.

Mr Magee’s main research interests are Australia-China bilateral relations, Cross Taiwan Strait Relations, China’s relations with Saudi Arabia and the Middle East and China-Russia relations.

He holds B.A. (Hons) and LLB degrees from Monash University and was recognised by Monash University in 2011 as a Monash University Distinguished Alumni. In 2013, he was recognised by the Taipei Language Institute as a TLI Outstanding Alumni. In 1992, he was appointed a United Nations Fellow and spent half a year based in Geneva and New York.