Australian Ambassadors to China: David Irvine and Ric Smith

The Australia-China Relations Institute (ACRI) at the University of Technology Sydney was delighted to host our Canberra supporters at the second ‘Ambassadors Series’ panel event featuring former Australian Ambassadors to China David Irvine and Ric Smith.

David Irvine was Australian Ambassador to China 2000-2003. He was Director General of ASIS 2003-2009, Director General of ASIO 2009-2014 and has recently been appointed to the Foreign Investment Review Board.

Ric Smith was Australian Ambassador to China 1996-2000. He was also Ambassador to Indonesia 2001-2002, Secretary of the Department of Defence 2002-2006 and Special Envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan from 2009 to 2013.

Drawing on the insights of their time in Beijing, the panel shared their unique understanding of what has built the China we know today.

Moderator and ACRI Director Bob Carr quizzed them about the issues that dominated their terms; about the lessons they learnt; about the rapid changes in China that occurred on their watch and what all this means for Australia-China relations in 2016.

This event was made possible with the kind support of the National Library of Australia.