Philippine Ambassador to Australia Ma. Hellen B. De La Vega (left) pays a courtesy visit on former Australian Ambassador to the Philippines, Ms. Amanda Gorely, currently the First Assistant Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) of Australia, on 18 February 2019 in Canberra.

Ms. Gorely is in charge of the International Security Division at DFAT, the office that coordinates and leads Australia’s policy on counter-terrorism, cybersecurity, people-smuggling, defense exports, and arms control. As former Assistant Secretary of Foreign Affairs for ASEAN, Ambassador De La Vega worked extensively with Ms. Gorely in the Philippines during the Philippines’ chairmanship of ASEAN in 2017 and the first ASEAN-Australia Special Summit held in 2018 in Sydney.