Basseterre, St. Kitts, April 8, 2016: Mr. Alphonso Bridgewater, President of the SKNOC, has extended a warm hand of friendship to newly appointed Australian High Commissioner to St. Kitts and Nevis, Mr. John Pilbeam. The exchange took place this week when Mr. Pilbeam made a courtesy call to SKNOC headquarters at Olympic House, Basseterre which set the modus operandi for future high level discussions in the build up to the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast City, Australia and traditional Queen’s Baton Relay; and before that the Commonwealth Youth Games in The Bahamas in 2017.

Commenting on the meeting, Mr. Bridgewater, said, “We welcome High Commissioner Pilbeam to the Caribbean Community and look forward to building a strong and positive relationship with his office as we gear up to the important Commonwealth Games and meetings ahead. There is already a strong bond between Australia and the Caribbean, indeed with St. Kitts & Nevis in the form of Cricket and other Sports, and these bonds can only be strengthened as we work together to the benefit of the two countries.”

Mr John Pilbeam took up his appointment as Australia’s High Commissioner to Trinidad and Tobago, with non-resident accreditation to CARICOM countries, including St Kitts and Nevis, in February 2016. Mr. Pilbeam has been accredited as the Australian Ambassador to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). A career officer with DFAT and until recently Director of the Korean Peninsula and Mongolia Section, Mr. Pilbeam has previously served overseas as High Commissioner to Vanuatu and Deputy Consul-General in Hong Kong, with earlier postings in Seoul, New York, Port Moresby and Jamaica. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce, University of Melbourne and a Graduate Diploma in East Asian Studies (Korea), Australian National University.