Mr Graeme Meehan

Mr Meehan is a career officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and was most recently Head of Post, Consulate-General, Shanghai. He has previously served overseas as Deputy Head of Mission, Australian Embassy, Beijing; Deputy Head of Post, Australian Representative Office, Taipei; and Counsellor, Australian Embassy, Beijing.

In Canberra Mr Meehan has served as Assistant Secretary, East Asia Branch; Deputy Head, China Free Trade Agreement Taskforce; and Director, Asia Section, International Division, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

Mr Meehan holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from the University of Melbourne. He speaks Russian and Chinese.
 

Sentencing of Alexei Navalny

03 February 2021

Australia is deeply concerned by Russian authorities’ arrest and subsequent sentencing of Alexei Navalny to two years and eight months’ imprisonment. The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) concluded that Mr Navalny’s 2014 conviction, which was used as grounds for his current detention, was “unlawful” and “politically motivated”. We call for Mr Navalny’s immediate and unconditional release.

Australia is also concerned by the approach of Russian authorities against peaceful protesters and journalists detained in recent weeks. We call for their release without delay. Australia supports all peoples’ right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.

We reaffirm a call for Russia to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into Alexei Navalny’s poisoning using the banned Novichok nerve agent last August.

The health and safety of Australians overseas is our highest priority. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, including measures put in place by local authorities, changes have been made to our services.  These changes are intended to protect you (our clients), our staff and the wider community.

APPOINTMENTS 

At this time we are not taking any routine passport or notarial appointments until further notice. Please continue to monitor our website and twitter for updates, and book an appointment with us once we resume our standard services.

If you require an Emergency Passport or other emergency services, please email us at [email protected] describing your circumstances or call on +7 495 956 6070 (during business hours). We will continue to prioritise consular services to those in genuine need.

If you require urgent consular assistance during business hours (9am - 5pm Monday to Friday), please contact us  on +7 495 956 6070. Contact details of our Honorary Consulates in St Petersburg and Almaty are also available here. Outside business hours, please contact the 24-hour Consular Emergency Centre on +61 2 62613305. 

Please subscribe for updates and monitor our official travel advice on Smartraveller website.

 

TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS DUE TO OMICRON COVID-19 VARIANT

 From 28 November, in response to the new Omicron COVID-19 variant of concern, Australian travellers who have spent time in South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Seychelles, Malawi, Namibia or Eswatini during the past 14 days, must enter quarantine for 14 days and be tested at port of entry to Australia regardless of vaccination status. Fully vaccinated Australians who are returning from overseas to NSW, VIC or ACT and who have not spent any time in one of the countries listed above may still be required to get a COVID-19 PCR test and self-isolate at their accommodation or place of residence for at least 72 hours. Anyone who is not a citizen or permanent resident of Australia, or their immediate family including parents of citizens, and has been in African countries where the Omicron variant has been detected - within the past 14 days - will not be able to enter Australia. 

Check the latest  quarantine arrangements for the state or territory to which you are travelling prior to making any travel arrangements, as these requirements could change further at short notice.

More information on additional border security measures and travel restrictions due to Omicron COVID-19 variant can be found on:

• Department of Health website
• Smartraveller website
• Australian Government website

 

REOPENING OF BORDERS

From 1 November 2021, Australian citizens, permanent residents and their immediate family members, including parents, who are fully vaccinated with a TGA approved or recognised vaccine, or are under the age of 12, may be eligible for reduced quarantine requirements on their return to Australia, depending on port of arrival.

Travel to Australia will remain subject to quarantine arrangements in each individual state and territory.  Before you book your flight, check the quarantine arrangements for the state or territory to which you are travelling. When preparing to travel to Australia, follow the steps in the traveller checklist.

Sputnik V (Gamaleya Institute) is NOT on the approved list of vaccines. There are also no plans to arrange TGA approved vaccinations at the Australian Embassy in Moscow.

For unvaccinated travellers or travellers vaccinated with Sputnik V, international passenger caps and quarantine arrangements will remain in place. Please note that the Australian Embassy in Moscow is unable to  provide letters of support to airlines for travellers to enter Australia. Airlines determine how they will manage the temporary caps which are still in place. The allocation of seats on a flight is decided entirely by the airlines.

The following exceptions will  also apply:

• Australian citizens or residents who are unable to be vaccinated on medical grounds, will be treated as though they were fully vaccinated for the purposes of border arrangements. Check information on medical exemptions for the state or territory to which you are travelling.
• Children under the age of 12 are considered fully-vaccinated for the purposes of travel.
• New South Wales, Victoria and the Australian Capital Territory have agreed to apply an exemption for those Australians aged 12–17 to arrive from overseas who do not meet the criteria for fully vaccinated. More information can be found on the Department of Health website and your Australian state or territory government.

The Australian government will also continue to help Australians return to Australia by arranging additional facilitated flights with commercial airlines. More information can be found below under ‘Facilitated Flights’

Temporary visa holders continue to require a travel exemption to enter Australia, unless they are in an exempt category. Fully vaccinated travellers holding a valid visa listed in the New arrangements for eligible visa holders may be automatically exempt, however travel restrictions are now in place for temporary visa holders who have been in South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Seychelles, Mozambique, or Malawi during the past 14 days. More information can be found on the Department of Home Affairs website.

 

FACILITATED FLIGHTS

The Australian government is continuing to help Australians return to Australia by arranging additional flights with commercial airlines. The number of government-arranged commercial flights depends on the number of people states and territories can quarantine in a given week. Flights are primarily being arranged for vulnerable as well as unvaccinated Australians.

Most of the facilitated flights scheduled for December are with Singapore Airlines departing from Singapore to Darwin on:

• 5 December 2021   (no connecting flights available from Moscow)
• 7  December 2021  (connecting flight departs Moscow on 6 December)
• 13 December 2021 (connecting flight departs Moscow on 12 December)
• 15 December 2021 (connecting flight departs Moscow on 13 December)
• 16 December 2021  (no connecting flights available from Moscow)

Passengers will be required to quarantine at the Howard Springs facility for 14 days at their own cost. Travellers won’t be able to transfer to another state to home quarantine, even if they have been double vaccinated with an approved or recognised TGA vaccine. 

If you wish to return to Australia on one of the facilitated flights please visit  Singapore Airlines website, and select one of the approved transit cities (e.g. Moscow) to Darwin, ensuring that the second leg of the itinerary from Singapore to Darwin (flight SQ249) is marked ‘DFF (DFAT Facilitated Flight’).  Please note - all passengers must book their full journey on a single itinerary (i.e. one ticket number) rather than splitting into separate tickets. Only Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore approved transit city and airlines are available for transit sales onto SQ249 - For more information on transiting click here.  Transfers to and from flights operated by other airlines, that have not been approved by CAAS will not be allowed to connect with DFAT facilitated flights. 

For flights departing from Moscow (transiting through Singapore), a negative COVID-19 PCR test result taken within 48 hours before departure must be presented at check-in. Please ensure that you check PCR testing requirements with the airline directly prior to travel.

DFAT REGISTRATIONS

Following changes to international travel that came into effect on 1 November 2021, DFAT’s temporary COVID-19 registration portal  is no longer open for new registrations. This temporary portal was established in the context of Australia’s COVID-19 border settings. We’ll still be providing consular support to Australians in difficulty overseas.  The process for seeking consular assistance has reverted to pre-COVID settings. 

Australian citizens and permanent residents with existing registrations can still login to their accounts if they need assistance to return. We’ll continue to assist vulnerable Australians overseas who are unable to return on scheduled commercial flights with our program of facilitated commercial flights.

Please subscribe for updates and monitor our official travel advice on Smartraveller website.

• Coronavirus (COVID-19) – information for Australian travellers can be found here
• Coronavirus (COVID-19) - information on financial support from the government can be found here
• Coronavirus (COVID-19)- information on entry into Australia can be found here
• Coronovirus (COVID-19)-  information from the Department of Health can be found here

 

The new Smartraveller website has been launched.

Smartraveller has the latest, authoritative travel advice so you can be informed and prepared about overseas travel.

Subscribe to receive travel advice updates - by simply supplying your name and email address – straight to your inbox.

You can now also subscribe to the new SMS service - by supplying your mobile number – to receive critical alerts in the event of a crisis overseas.

In a crisis, Smartraveller will activate a crisis page on its website. It will make it easier for you or someone you know to contact the Australian Government if you need help. It will supplement the consular emergency hotline.

Visit www.smartraveller.gov.au to subscribe or connect with Smartraveller on Facebook and Twitter.

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