The heads of British diplomatic missions are persons appointed as senior diplomats to individual nations, or international organizations. They are usually appointed as ambassadors, except in member countries of the Commonwealth of Nations where a high commissioner is appointed. The head of mission to an international organization is usually a permanent representative. For some nations a consul or consul-general is appointed.
The positions have a dual role, being representatives of the British monarchy and the British government; they are recommended by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and then approved by Buckingham Palace.
Resident heads of mission
Mission | Location | Type | Head of mission | Position | List |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Albania | Tirana | Embassy | Nick Abbott | Ambassador | List |
Algeria | Algiers | Embassy | Sharon Wardle | Ambassador | List |
Angola | Luanda | Embassy | Bharat Joshi | Ambassador | List |
Argentina | Buenos Aires | Embassy | Kirsty Hayes | Ambassador | List |
Armenia | Yerevan | Embassy | John Gallagher | Ambassador | List |
Australia | Canberra | High Commission | Victoria Treadell | High Commissioner | List |
Austria | Vienna | Embassy | Lindsay Skoll | Ambassador | List |
Azerbaijan | Baku | Embassy | Fergus Auld | Ambassador | List |
Bahamas | Nassau | High Commission | Tom Hartley | High Commissioner | List |
Bahrain | Manama | Embassy | Alastair Long | Ambassador | List |
Bangladesh | Dhaka | High Commission | Sarah Cooke | High Commissioner | List |
Barbados | Bridgetown | High Commission | Scott Furssedonn-Wood | High Commissioner | List |
Belarus | Minsk | Embassy | David Ward | Chargé d’Affaires | List |
Belgium | Brussels | Embassy | Anne Sherriff | Ambassador | List |
Belize | Belmopan | High Commission | Christine Rowlands (Acting) | High Commissioner | List |
Bolivia | La Paz | Embassy | Richard Porter | Ambassador | List |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | Sarajevo | Embassy | Julian Reilly | Ambassador | List |
Botswana | Gaborone | High Commission | Giles Enticknap MBE | High Commissioner | List |
Brazil | Brasília | Embassy | Stephanie Al-Qaq | Ambassador | List |
Brunei | Bandar Seri Begawan | High Commission | Alexandra McKenzie | High Commissioner | List |
Bulgaria | Sofia | Embassy | Nathaniel Copsey | Ambassador | List |
Burma | Yangon | Embassy | Pete Vowles | Ambassador | List |
Cambodia | Phnom Penh | Embassy | Dominic Williams | Ambassador | List |
Cameroon | Yaoundé | High Commission | Matt Woods | High Commissioner | List |
Canada | Ottawa | High Commission | David Prodger | Chargé d’Affaires | List |
Chad | N'Djamena | Embassy Office | Ross Matthews | Ambassador | |
Chile | Santiago | Embassy | Louise De Sousa | Ambassador | List |
China | Beijing | Embassy | Dame Caroline Wilson | Ambassador | List |
Colombia | Bogotá | Embassy | George Hodgson | Ambassador | List |
Democratic Republic of the Congo | Kinshasa | Embassy | Alyson King | Ambassador | List |
Costa Rica | San José | Embassy | Ben Lyster-Binns | Ambassador | List |
Côte d'Ivoire | Abidjan | Embassy | Catherine Brooker | Ambassador | List |
Croatia | Zagreb | Embassy | Simon Thomas | Ambassador | List |
Cuba | Havana | Embassy | Sir George Hollingbery | Ambassador | List |
Cyprus | Nicosia | High Commission | Michael Tatham | High Commissioner | List |
Czech Republic | Prague | Embassy | Matt Field | Ambassador | List |
Denmark | Copenhagen | Embassy | Joëlle Jenny | Ambassador | List |
Dominican Republic | Santo Domingo | Embassy | Mockbul Ali | Ambassador | List |
Haiti | List | ||||
Ecuador | Quito | Embassy | Chris Campbell | Ambassador | List |
Egypt | Cairo | Embassy | Gareth Bayley | Ambassador | List |
El Salvador | San Salvador | Embassy | Nick Whittingham | Chargé d'Affaires | List |
Eritrea | Asmara | Embassy | David McIlroy | Ambassador | List |
Estonia | Tallinn | Embassy | Ross Allen | Ambassador | List |
Eswatini | Mbabane | High Commission | Colin Wells | High Commissioner | |
Ethiopia | Addis Ababa | Embassy | Darren Welch | Ambassador | List |
European Union | Brussels | Embassy | Lindsay Croisdale-Appleby CMG | Ambassador | List |
Fiji | Suva | High Commission | Brian Jones | High Commissioner | List |
Finland | Helsinki | Embassy | Theresa Bubbear | Ambassador | List |
France | Paris | Embassy | Dame Menna Rawlings | Ambassador | List |
Gabon | Libreville | High Commission | Simon Day | High Commissioner | List |
The Gambia | Banjul | High Commission | David Belgrove | High Commissioner | List |
Georgia | Tbilisi | Embassy | Mark Clayton | Ambassador | List |
Germany | Berlin | Embassy | Andrew Mitchell | Ambassador | List |
Ghana | Accra | High Commission | Harriet Thompson | High Commissioner | List |
Greece | Athens | Embassy | Matthew Lodge | Ambassador | List |
Guatemala | Guatemala City | Embassy | Nick Whittingham | Ambassador | List |
Guinea | Conakry | Embassy | John Marshall | Ambassador | List |
Guyana | Georgetown | High Commission | Jane Miller | High Commissioner | List |
Holy See | Vatican City | Embassy | Christopher Trott | Ambassador | List |
Hungary | Budapest | Embassy | Paul Fox | Ambassador | List |
Iceland | Reykjavík | Embassy | Bryony Mathew | Ambassador | List |
India | New Delhi | High Commission | Lindy Cameron | High Commissioner | List |
Indonesia | Jakarta | Embassy | Dominic Jermey | Ambassador | List |
Iran | Tehran | Embassy | Simon Shercliff | Ambassador | List |
Iraq | Baghdad | Embassy | Stephen Hitchen | Ambassador | List |
Ireland | Dublin | Embassy | Paul Johnston | Ambassador | List |
Israel | Tel Aviv | Embassy | Simon Walters | Ambassador | List |
Italy | Rome | Embassy | Edward Llewellyn, Baron Llewellyn of Steep | Ambassador | List |
Jamaica | Kingston | High Commission | Judith Slater | High Commissioner | List |
Japan | Tokyo | Embassy | Julia Longbottom | Ambassador | List |
Jordan | Amman | Embassy | Philip Hall | Ambassador | List |
Kazakhstan | Almaty | Embassy | Kathy Leach | Ambassador | List |
Kenya | Nairobi | High Commission | Neil Wigan | High Commissioner | List |
Kosovo | Pristina | Embassy | Jonathan Hargreaves | Ambassador | List |
Kuwait | Kuwait City | Embassy | Belinda Lewis | Ambassador | List |
Kyrgyzstan | Bishkek | Embassy | Charles Garrett | Ambassador | List |
Laos | Vientiane | Embassy | John Pearson | Ambassador | List |
Latvia | Riga | Embassy | Paul Brummell | Ambassador | List |
Lebanon | Beirut | Embassy | Ian Collard | Ambassador | List |
Lesotho | Maseru | High Commission | Harry MacDonald | High Commissioner | List |
Liberia | Monrovia | Embassy | Neil Bradley | Ambassador | List |
Libya | Tripoli | Embassy | Martin Longden | Ambassador | List |
Lithuania | Vilnius | Embassy | Brian Olley | Ambassador | List |
Luxembourg | Luxembourg | Embassy | Fleur Thomas | Ambassador | List |
Madagascar | Antananarivo | Embassy | David Ashley | Ambassador | List |
Malawi | Lilongwe | High Commission | Fiona Ritchie (diplomat) | High Commissioner | List |
Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur | High Commission | Ailsa Terry | High Commissioner | List |
Mali | Bamako | Embassy | Katy Ransome | Ambassador | List |
Malta | Valletta | High Commission | Cathy Ward | High Commissioner | List |
Mauritania | Nouakchott | Embassy | Colin Wells | Ambassador | List |
Mauritius | Port Louis | High Commission | Charlotte Pierre | High Commissioner | List |
Mexico | Mexico City | Embassy | Susannah Goshko | Ambassador | List |
Moldova | Chişinău | Embassy | Steven Fisher Fern Horine | Ambassador | List |
Mongolia | Ulaanbaatar | Embassy | Fiona Blyth | Ambassador | List |
Montenegro | Podgorica | Embassy | Dawn McKen | Ambassador | List |
Morocco | Rabat | Embassy | Simon Martin | Ambassador | List |
Mozambique | Maputo | High Commission | Helen Lewis | High Commissioner | List |
Namibia | Windhoek | High Commission | Charles Moore | High Commissioner | List |
Nepal | Kathmandu | Embassy | Robert Fenn | Ambassador | List |
Netherlands | The Hague | Embassy | Joanna Roper | Ambassador | List |
New Zealand | Wellington | High Commission | Iona Thomas | High Commissioner | List |
Niger | Niamey | Embassy | Catherine Inglehearn | Ambassador | |
Nigeria | Abuja | High Commission | Catriona Laing | High Commissioner | List |
North Korea | Pyongyang | Embassy | David Ellis | Ambassador | List |
North Macedonia | Skopje | Embassy | Rachel Galloway | Ambassador | List |
Norway | Oslo | Embassy | Jan Thompson | Ambassador | List |
Oman | Muscat | Embassy | Dr. Liane Saunders OBE | Ambassador | List |
Pakistan | Islamabad | High Commission | Jane Marriott | High Commissioner | List |
Panama | Panama City | Embassy | James Dauris | Ambassador | List |
Papua New Guinea | Port Moresby | High Commission | Keith Scott | High Commissioner | List |
Paraguay | Asunción | Embassy | Ramin Navai | Ambassador | List |
Peru | Lima | Embassy | Gavin Cook | Ambassador | List |
Philippines | Manila | Embassy | Laure Beaufils | Ambassador | List |
Poland | Warsaw | Embassy | Anna Clunes | Ambassador | List |
Portugal | Lisbon | Embassy | Lisa Bandari | Ambassador | List |
Qatar | Doha | Embassy | Neerav Patel | Ambassador | List |
Romania | Bucharest | Embassy | Giles Portman | Ambassador | List |
Russia | Moscow | Embassy | Nigel Casey | Ambassador | List |
Rwanda | Kigali | High Commission | Omar Daair | High Commissioner | List |
Samoa | Apia | High Commission | Gareth Keith Hoar, CVO | High Commissioner | List |
Saudi Arabia | Riyadh | Embassy | Neil Crompton | Ambassador | List |
Senegal | Dakar | Embassy | Juliette John | Ambassador | List |
Serbia | Belgrade | Embassy | Edward Ferguson | Ambassador | List |
Seychelles | Victoria | High Commission | Jeff Glekin | High Commissioner | List |
Sierra Leone | Freetown | High Commission | Simon Mustard | High Commissioner | List |
Singapore | Singapore | High Commission | Kara Owen | High Commissioner | List |
Slovakia | Bratislava | Embassy | Nigel Baker | Ambassador | List |
Slovenia | Ljubljana | Embassy | Tiffany Sadler | Ambassador | List |
Solomon Islands | Honiara | High Commission | Paul Turner | High Commissioner | List |
Somalia | Mogadishu | Embassy | Michael Nithavrianakis | Ambassador | List |
South Africa | Pretoria | High Commission | Antony Phillipson | High Commissioner | List |
South Korea | Seoul | Embassy | Colin Crooks | Ambassador | List |
South Sudan | Juba | Embassy | Guy Warrington | Ambassador | List |
Spain | Madrid | Embassy | Sir Alex Ellis | Ambassador | List |
Sri Lanka | Colombo | High Commission | Sarah Hulton | High Commissioner | List |
Sweden | Stockholm | Embassy | Samantha Job | Ambassador | List |
Switzerland | Bern | Embassy | James Squire | Ambassador | List |
Taiwan | Taipei | Office | John Dennis | Representative | List |
Tajikistan | Dushanbe | Embassy | Tim Jones | Ambassador | List |
Tanzania | Dar es Salaam | High Commission | David Concar | High Commissioner | List |
Thailand | Bangkok | Embassy | Mark Gooding | Ambassador | List |
Tonga | Nukuʻalofa | High Commissioner | Thorhilda Abbott-Watt | High Commissioner | List |
Trinidad and Tobago | Port of Spain | High Commission | Harriet Cross | High Commissioner | List |
Tunisia | Tunis | Embassy | Helen Winterton | Ambassador | List |
Turkey | Ankara | Embassy | Jill Morris | Ambassador | List |
Turkmenistan | Ashgabat | Embassy | Lucia Wilde | Ambassador | List |
Uganda | Kampala | High Commission | Kate Airey | High Commissioner | List |
Ukraine | Kyiv | Embassy | Martin Harris | Ambassador | List |
United Arab Emirates | Abu Dhabi | Embassy | Edward Hobart | Ambassador | List |
United States of America | Washington D.C. | Embassy | Dame Karen Pierce | Ambassador | List |
Uruguay | Montevideo | Embassy | Faye O'Connor | Ambassador | List |
Uzbekistan | Tashkent | Embassy | Timothy Smart | Ambassador | List |
Vanuatu | Port Vila | High Commission | Karen Bell | High Commissioner | List |
Venezuela | Caracas | Embassy | Colin Dick | Ambassador | List |
Vietnam | Hanoi | Embassy | Iain Frew | Ambassador | List |
Yemen | Sana'a | Embassy | Richard Oppenheim | Ambassador | List |
Zambia | Lusaka | High Commission | Nicholas Wooley | High Commissioner | List |
Zimbabwe | Harare | Embassy | Peter Vowles | Ambassador | List |
No diplomatic relations with Taiwan; office functions as an unofficial mission.
In 2021 the UK government established a resident Ambassador in Chad based in the EU delegation office in N'Djamena
In 2020 the UK government established a resident Ambassador in Niger based in the French Embassy compound in Niamey
Non-resident heads of mission
The United Kingdom does not maintain a full embassy or High Commission in a number of countries. In each of these cases the head of mission to another country, usually a neighbouring one, is also accredited to the other country (except, at present, for the ambassadors to Haiti and Honduras, who are dedicated but non-resident). In most cases a smaller, local mission provides for emergencies, and is headed by a lesser diplomat or a member of the local British community.
In April 2018 the Foreign Secretary announced the opening of nine new diplomatic posts across the Commonwealth. As a result, some countries which currently have non-resident High Commissioners are to receive resident High Commissioners. The expected dates of residence are noted below for those countries where an appointment has been announced.
Mission | Resident Country | Local Location | Local Mission | Non-Resident Head of mission | Local Position | List |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Afghanistan | Qatar | None | N/A | Robert Chatterton Dickson | Chargé d'Affaires ad Interim | List |
Andorra | Spain | None | N/A | Sir Alex Ellis | Ambassador | |
Antigua and Barbuda | Barbados | St John's | Honorary Consul | Scott Furssedonn-Wood | High Commissioner | |
Benin | Ghana | None | N/A | Harriet Thompson | Ambassador | |
Burkina Faso | Ghana | Ouagadougou | Honorary Consul | Harriet Thompson | Ambassador | |
Burundi | Rwanda | Bujumbura | Liaison Office | Omar Daair | Ambassador | |
Cape Verde | Senegal | São Vicente | Consul | Juliette John | Ambassador | |
Central African Republic | Cameroon | None | N/A | Matt Woods | Ambassador | |
Comoros | Madagascar | Moroni | N/A | David Ashley | Ambassador | |
Republic of the Congo | Democratic Republic of Congo | Brazzaville | Honorary Consul | Alyson King | Ambassador | |
Djibouti | Ethiopia | Djibouti City | Honorary Consul | Darren Welch | Ambassador | |
Dominica | Barbados | Roseau | Honorary Consul | Scott Furssedonn-Wood | High Commissioner | |
East Timor | Indonesia | Jakarta | Honorary Consul | Dominic Jermey | Ambassador | |
Equatorial Guinea | Cameroon | Malabo | Honorary Consul | Matt Woods | Ambassador | |
Grenada | Barbados | St George's | Honorary Consul | Scott Furssedonn-Wood | High Commissioner | |
Guinea-Bissau | Senegal | Bissau | Honorary Consul | Juliette John | Ambassador | |
Haiti | Dominican Republic | Port-au-Prince | Consul | Mockbul Ali | Ambassador | List |
Honduras | Guatemala | Tegucigalpa | Honorary Consul | Thomas Carter | Ambassador | List |
Kiribati | Fiji | None | N/A | Brian Jones | High Commissioner | |
Liechtenstein | Switzerland | None | N/A | James Squire | Ambassador | |
Maldives | Sri Lanka | Malé | Honorary Consul | Sarah Hulton | High Commissioner | |
Marshall Islands | Fiji | None | N/A | Brian Jones | Ambassador | |
Federated States of Micronesia | Fiji | None | N/A | Brian Jones | Ambassador | |
Monaco | France | Monaco | Honorary Consulate | Dame Menna Rawlings | Ambassador | |
Nauru | Solomon Islands | None | N/A | Paul Turner | High Commissioner | |
Nicaragua | Costa Rica | Managua | Embassy | Ross Denny | Ambassador | List |
Palau | Philippines | None | N/A | Laure Beaufils | Ambassador | |
Saint Kitts and Nevis | Barbados | Basseterre | Honorary Consul | Scott Furssedonn-Wood | High Commissioner | |
Saint Lucia | Barbados | Castries | High Commission | Scott Furssedonn-Wood | High Commissioner | |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Barbados | Kingstown | Honorary Consul | Scott Furssedonn-Wood | High Commissioner | |
San Marino | Italy | Rome | Consulate-General | Edward Llewellyn, Baron Llewellyn of Steep | Ambassador | |
São Tomé and Príncipe | Angola | São Tomé | Consulate | Bharat Joshi | Ambassador | |
Sudan | Ethiopia | None | N/A | Giles Lever | Ambassador | |
Suriname | Guyana | Paramaribo | Consulate | Jane Miller | Ambassador | |
Togo | Ghana | None | N/A | Harriet Thompson | Ambassador | |
Tuvalu | Fiji | None | N/A | Brian Jones | High Commissioner |
Heads of mission to non-sovereign territories
Mission | Location | Type | Head of mission | Position | List | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Hong Kong | Hong Kong | Consulate-General | Brian Davidson | Consul-General | List | Functions held by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (before 1968 Colonial Office), British Council and British Trade Commission prior to 1997 |
Jerusalem | East Jerusalem | Consulate-General | Philip Hall | Consul-General | List | Mission to the occupied Palestinian territories |
Macau | Macau | Honorary Consulate | Glenn McCartney | Honorary Consul | Full consular services for Macau are provided via the Consulate in Hong Kong and the Consul-General to Hong Kong is the official diplomat for Macau |
Heads of mission to international organisations
See also
References
- "Nigel Farage? How does the UK appoint ambassadors?". BBC News. 22 November 2016.
- "Mrs. Christine Rowlands, MVO". GOV.UK. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
- "Ross Matthews". GOV.UK. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
- "Colin Wells". GOV.UK. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
- "Change of Her Majesty's Ambassador to Chad: Mark Matthews". FCDO. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
- "UK to open new embassies in Chad and Niger". FCDO. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
- "Foreign Secretary expands UK Commonwealth diplomatic network". Foreign & Commonwealth Office. 19 April 2018.