Sydney: Australia today (Aug 9, 2004) appointed John McCarthy, a career diplomat and its Ambassador in Tokyo, as its new High Commissioner to India, with concurrent accreditation to Bhutan.

McCarthy will replace Penny Wensley, who has been High Commissioner to India since November 2001 and Ambassador to Bhutan since May 2003, an official announcement said.

He is expected to take up the new appointment in December this year.

Making the announcement, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said, "Australia's relations with India have grown strongly in recent years, commensurate with India's increasing political, strategic and economic weight in the Asia-Pacific region and globally."

"Regular dialogue between Australian and Indian Foreign Ministers and between senior officials of the two countries has strengthened bilateral understanding. There is an increasing convergence of views and closer cooperation on international, regional and multilateral issues," he added.

A career diplomat with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, McCarthy has also served as Ambassador in Jakarta, Washington and Bangkok; as Minister (Congressional and Public Affairs) in Washington; Ambassador in Mexico and Hanoi and held other diplomatic appointments in Baghdad, Damascus and Vientiane.