Ambassadors Roundtable

On Wednesday 16 March 2022 I met the Ambassadors to the UK from Japan, Indonesia, Vietnam and Uzbekistan at a roundtable event hosted by the Inter-Parliamentary Union British Group. The Ambassadors made presentations, which were followed by a question and answer session.

His Excellency Hayashi Hajime has been the Japanese Ambassador since December 2020. He has previously held government posts in national security and the cabinet office in Japan, as well as diplomatic roles in India, Belgium and the USA.

Before becoming Ambassador to the UK, His Excellency Dr Desra Percaya served as Director General for Asia Pacific and Africa at the Indonesian Ministry for Foreign Affairs, responsible for relations with over 100 countries, including the ASEAN network. He also knows Walsall, having studied at the University of Birmingham.

His Excellency Mr Nguyen Hoang Long rose through the Vietnam Ministry of Foreign Affairs from his first role in 1999 to the post of Director General of the Department for Foreign Affairs for the Provinces. In 2021, he took up his position as Ambassador to the United Kingdom.

The diplomatic postings of His Excellency Mr Said Rustamov of Uzbekistan have included Israel, the USA and Spain. He has also held senior roles at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Uzbekistan, and became Ambassador to the United Kingdom in 2019.

The Ambassadors’ presentations and answers were timely and insightful. I welcome the strengthening of dialogue between Diplomats and Parliamentarians.