Paul O'Sullivan
Paul Thomas O'Sullivan, AO (b. Sydney, 1948) is Australia's High Commissioner to New Zealand and former Director-General of Security. Prior to his appointment to head ASIO in July 2005, O'Sullivan was former Prime Minister John Howard's senior foreign affairs advisor.[1]
O'Sullivan attended Marcellin College, Randwick,[2] and graduated from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Arts (Hons). After joining the Department of Foreign Affairs in 1971, O'Sullivan held diplomatic appointments in Rome, Washington, D.C. and Cairo. Between 1991 and 1994 he was the Australian UN disarmament representative. From 1994 to 1996 he headed two divisions in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). After serving as Deputy Chief of Mission at the Australian Embassy in Washington, O'Sullivan was appointed as the Australian Ambassador to Germany in 1999.[3]
O'Sullivan was the Deputy Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade between 2003 and 2004. He was appointed as Senior Advisor (International) to the Prime Minister in January 2004.[4]
Contents |
[edit] Criticisms and controversies
[edit] Allegation by former ASIS officer
O'Sullivan's appointment as Director-General of Security was criticised by former Australian Secret Intelligence Service officer Warren Reed, who claimed that O'Sullivan failed to protect Reed's cover while serving as deputy to the Australian Ambassador in Cairo, leading to the abduction of Reed's operational assistant by Egyptian security agents and the closure of the ASIS station in Cairo.[5][6]
[edit] Role in "Oil for Food" scandal
According to evidence presented to the Australian Royal Commission into the "oil for food" scandal, in June 2005, while serving as senior international advisor to the Prime Minister, O'Sullivan advised executives of the Australian Wheat Board (AWB) against full co-operation with a United Nations inquiry into allegations that the AWB had breached UN sanctions by paying kickbacks to the regime of former Iraqi dictator Sadaam Hussein. Notes tendered to the Australian Government's Cole Inquiry showed that O'Sullivan told AWB executives to "[k]eep your responses narrow [and] technical. Do not blame US, complain about process." Prime Minister John Howard had previously ordered full co-operation with the UN inquiry.[7]
[edit] Disgraced diplomat at the Australian High Commission in Wellington
In November 2010 (then) Lieutenent Commander Mark Napier of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) was the Assistant Defence Attache under O'Sullivan. Napier was found to have been accessing child pornography. Napier was stripped of his diplomatic immunity and pleaded guilty in a New Zealand court case. He was fined and returned to Canberra and has since resigned from the RAN. At the time of Napiers appointment to Wellington some two years earlier, O'Sullivan was heading ASIO - the department tasked with vetting individuals for their suitability for Australian diplomatic positions.
[edit] References
- ^ Cynthia Banham, Howard adviser lands top spy job, Sydney Morning Herald, 11 July 2005.
- ^ Tom Allard, Read all about it - soon it will be illegal, Sydney Morning Herald, 28 October 2005.
- ^ Minister for Foreign Affairs, Diplomatic Appointment: Ambassador To Germany, Media Release, 2 February 1999.
- ^ Australian Institute of Company Directors, Speaker's biographical note.
- ^ Tom Allard, New ASIO chief 'blew Cairo spy's cover', The Age, 17 July 2005.
- ^ Laurie Oakes, Interview: Warren Reed, Sunday, Nine Network Australia, 17 July 2005.
- ^ Michael Edwards, AWB told to be "small target", Lateline, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 29 March 2006.
[edit] External links
- Marian Wilkinson, Spy chief gives little away at first outing, Sydney Morning Herald, 14 October 2005.
- Tom Allard, Citizen to terrorist a quick step: ASIO chief, Sydney Morning Herald, 13 March 2006.
- Brendan Nicholson, ASIO warns of domestic terror risks, The Age, 5 May 2006.
- David McKnight, Background check shows ASIO still needs to be watched, '"Sydney Morning Herald, 8 May 2006.
- Mark Todd, ASIO chief warns of attacks in Australia, The Age, 14 October 2006.
- AAP, Spy chief gagged on AWB, The Age, 14 February 2006.
- Leigh Sales, ASIO boss defends agents over kidnapping, ABC News, 5 December 2007.
- ASIO boss rejects 'kidnap' accusation, AAP, 5 December 2007.
- Officer-who-admitted-child-porn-charges-named, Stuff website 16 Nov 2010
| Government offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Dennis Richardson |
Director-General of Security 2005–2009 |
Succeeded by David Irvine |
 |
This diplomat-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
