New heads of mission
Agostinho Tavares da Silva Neto
Ambassador of Angola
Mr. Tavares da Silva Neto joined Angola’s foreign ministry in 1977 after completing studies at the Karl Marx Institute in Luanda. Much later, he would also complete a degree in international relations at the University of Brasilia.
But before that, he held several governmental positions. In 1982, he was head of the department of human resources in the secretary of state for cooperation. In 1987, he was sent to Spain, on his first foreign posting, as an administrative attaché. In 1997, he moved on to India, where he served as third secretary before returning to headquarters in 2000 as head of the Asia and Oceania department.
From 2000 to 2005, he served as first secretary, and later counselor, at the embassy in Brazil before returning to his former job at headquarters (head of the Asia and Oceania department).
Mr. Tavares da Silva Neto speaks Portuguese, Spanish and English. He is married to Prudence de Sousa Carneiro da Silva and has five children.
Oscar Mauricio Duarte Granados
Ambassador of El Salvador
Mr. Duarte Granados is an academic who came to diplomacy later in his career. After completing studies at the Karl Marx Institute of Economics in Bulgaria, he completed a master’s degree in law and social sciences in 2000. A few years later, he received a master’s in human rights and education for peace.
Mr. Duarte Granados began his teaching career at the University of El Salvador in 1993. He became deputy dean of the school of law and social sciences in 2003, a position he kept until 2011. In 2003, he also became a member for the council of University of El Salvador and a member of the board of directors of the school of law and social sciences. He has represented the University at the Central American council for integration and has worked, since 2004, as a member of the examination board for international relations at the university. Between 1998 and 2001, he was a coordinator of assistance for refugees and victims of Tornado Mitch in Usulutan, El Salvador.
Mr. Duarte Granados is married. He speaks Bulgarian, English, basic Macedonian and Spanish.
Nam Joo-hong
Ambassador of Korea
Mr. Joo-hong comes to diplomacy through academia. He has a bachelor’s degree in political science and international relations from Konkuk University in Seoul, a master’s in strategic studies from the University of Aberdeen in the UK and a PhD in political science and international relations from the London School of Economics.
He began his career as a research fellow at Harvard University’s centre for international affairs, and then became a professor at the National Defence College. He then worked as a special adviser in charge of security and unification at the national security planning agency and as deputy secretary-general of the national unification advisory council. He then became a professor at Kyonggi University’s graduate school of unification and security and later at the same university’s graduate school of politics and policy. He added the title of dean of that school in 2003. Between 2007 and 2008, he was a senior adviser to the 17th presidential transition committee and became ambassador for international security affairs at the Korean ministry of foreign affairs and trade in 2010.
Mr. Joo-hong is married with a son and a daughter.
Leslie B. Gatan
Ambassador of the Philippines
Mr. Gatan is a career diplomat who joined the service in 1983, in the office of the United Nations and other international organizations. He spent three years in that job before being posted to Sri Lanka as third secretary and vice-consul. After that, he was posted for five years to Switzerland as first secretary and consul after which he returned to headquarters and became director of ASEAN affairs. His next posting, as minister-counsellor, was to Thailand, where he spent two years before being sent to Italy as counsellor and consul for a year and then to Belgium as minister for another year.
Back at headquarters, Mr. Gatan spent a year as special assistant in the office of the undersecretary for policy before being sent to the United Nations in New York for six years, first as minister and then as deputy permanent representative. He then returned to headquarters as assistant secretary of the office of the UN and other international organizations.
He has a bachelor of arts in political science, a bachelor of business management and a masters in urban and regional planning. He is married to Lydia Debbie Mijares.
Ulrich Lehner
Ambassador of Switzerland
Canada isn’t new for Mr. Lehner, a career diplomat who wrote the Swiss foreign service exam in 1981 and joined soon after. Part of his early education took place in Sion, his birthplace and then, for a time, in Toronto before he moved on to study in Geneva. He has a degree in economic and social science from the University of Geneva and a post-graduate diploma in security policy studies.
His first posting, for one year, was to Portugal as an attaché. He then spent a year as third secretary at the embassy in Brazil before being sent as second secretary to the embassy in Norway. He returned to headquarters as an officer in the policy planning branch and later headed the office for peace policy.
In 1991, he went to Rome as counselor for four years and then followed that up with four years at the embassy in Egypt. From 1998 to 2002, he was director of the Geneva Centre for Security Policy and from 2004 to 2007, he headed the political division responsible for international organizations. Prior to coming to Canada, he served for four years as ambassador to France and Monaco. In Canada, he’s dually accredited to Bahamas.
Mr. Lehner is married to Federica Lehner Timbal, and has two children. He speaks French, German, English, Italian and Portuguese.
Non-heads of mission
Afghanistan
Abdullah Sabet Mushahed
Third Secretary
Algeria
Omar Zeggai
Second Secretary
Australia
Spiros Drossos
First Secretary
Thomas Fuller
First Secretary
Evan Peter Gallagher
Attaché
Mark Joseph Kennedy
Attaché
Maree Clare Warton
Attaché
Bangladesh
Aparna Rani Paul
Second Secretary
Benin
Mahugnon Magloire Kiki
Attaché
Brazil
Elter Nehemias Santos Barbosa
Second Secretary
Burkina Faso
Ketokata Roselyne E. Kambou Sanou
Second Counsellor
China
Hanming Hu
First Secretary
Hua Jin
First Secretary
Jin Liu
Minister-Counsellor and Deputy Head of Mission
Zhiming Qu
First Secretary
Lanchun Zhang
Minister-Counsellor
Czech Republic
Robert Tripes
Minister-Counsellor
Egypt
Mohamed Salah Ali
Attaché
Ibrahim Osman Mohamed Bakkar
Attaché
European Union
José Antonio Torres Lacasa
First Counsellor
Penelope Joan Ward
Attaché
France
Ilde Valérie Gorguet-Comba
First Secretary
Frédéric Michel Régis Kaplan
Minister-Counsellor
Georgia
Ketevan Markozia
Second Secretary
Hungary
Maria Toth
Attaché
Indonesia
Sylvia Masri
Third Secretary
Agoes Soebagio
Attaché
Sulistya Widayanta
Attaché
Iran
Mohammad Reza Khodai
First Secretary
Amir Hamzeh Shirani Nejad
Third Secretary
Israel
Liliane Haim
First Secretary and Consul
Japan
Toshitaka Higashira
First Secretary
Naotaka Sugawara
Second Secretary
Jordan
Bashar Abdel-Majid Abu Taleb
First Secretary
Korea, Republic
Min Eui Hong
Third Secretary
Bongwoo Ko
Minister-Counsellor
Libya
Abubaker M.A. Karmos
Chargé d’Affaires
Mali
Boubacar Ballo
First Counsellor
Mexico
Mauro Salas Medrano
Attaché
Morocco
Nadya Talmi
Minister-Counsellor
Niger
Ichaou Amadou
First Secretary and Chargé D’affaires
Norway
Tobias Frambe Svenningsen
Minister-Counsellor
Philippines
Eric Gerardo Tamayo
First Secretary and Consul
Poland
Agata Wiktorowicz
Third Secretary
Romania
Dorian Mihai
Minister-Counsellor
Russia
Mikhail Gorbunov
First Secretary
Alexey Klyachin
Attaché
Saudi Arabia
Mr. Naif Mutib M. Al Quwayd
Attaché
Solaiman Abdulrahman Al Theeb
Attaché
Hubaysh Muaddi B. Aldawsari
Attaché
Nasser Masoud H. Aldawsari
Attaché
Hammad Saleh S. Aldhidan
Attaché
Fahad Zaid A. Algubaa
Attaché
Hajjaj Rwidan S. Alharbi
Attaché
Fahad M. M. Alkahtani
Attaché
Ahmed Nawar O. Alnadwi
Attaché
Abdulaziz Rashed M. Alnajada
Attaché
Nasser Mohammed Sh. Alosaimi
Attaché
Hani Abdullah S. Alrashoudi
Attaché
Abdulaziz Hamed A. Alwasel
Attaché
Ahmed Mohammed S. Bin Musaed
Attaché
Majed S.M. Bin Showeil
First Secretary
Ismail Mohammed Rashad I. Najjar
Attaché
Senegal
Saiba Sylla
First Counsellor
Slovak Republic
Jan Galoci
First Secretary
Trinidad And Tobago
Cynthia Veronica Daniel-Sobion
Attaché
Turkey
Gizem Emel
Second Secretary
Memik Yasar
Attaché
Ukraine
Oksana Kozlovska
First Secretary
United States of America
Susan Elizabeth Astley-Cass
Attaché
David Alan Brackins
Attaché
Scott Henry Learmonth
Attaché
Steven Louis Pike
First Secretary
Christopher Robert Riche
Minister-Counsellor
Viet Dung Vietnam Vu
Minister-Counsellor
Zambia
Mirriam Tundu
Third Secretary
