Helen Stylianou
Chargé d'affaires to Japan
Helen Stylianou was appointed as Australian Chargé d'affaires to Japan in January 2026. She took up the appointment as Deputy Ambassador in July 2025.
Ms Stylianou is a senior career officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and was most recently First Assistant Secretary of the Trade Resilience, Indo-Pacific Economic Cooperation and Latin America Division, Australia’s Ambassador to APEC and Chief Negotiator in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework negotiations.
Ms Stylianou has previously served in Brussels as Australia’s Deputy Ambassador to the European Union, NATO, Belgium and Luxembourg (2016-2020), at the Australian Permanent Mission to the World Trade Organization, Geneva (2008-2011), the Australian Permanent Mission to the United Nations, Vienna (1999-2003) and as Vice-Consul, Australian Embassy, Manila (1997-8).
Ms Stylianou has a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) and Bachelor of Arts from the University of Melbourne. She has a Masters degree in Foreign Affairs and Trade from Monash University.
Margaret Bowen
Minister (Commercial)
General Manager, North East Asia
Margaret commenced as Minister (Commercial) at the Australian Embassy in Tokyo and General Manager, North East Asia for the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) in November 2025. Immediately prior to this, she was Consul-General and Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner based in Osaka.
She has extensive experience in senior roles across the Australian Government. Her work over many years has focused on Australia's economic and trade relations with Asia. in Austrade, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. During the Covid pandemic, Margaret led the government's tourism recovery taskforce. She was a senior advisor to the Minister for Trade and Tourism.
Margaret has long-standing connections to Japan. She first visited Japan as a high school student and over the years she has lived in Tokyo, Niigata and Osaka. Margaret holds degrees from the Australian National University and Monash University. She also studied at Tsudajuku University in Tokyo. Margaret is undertaking part-time PHD studies in post-war Japanese history.
Stuart Watts
Minister Counsellor (Political)
Stuart has been Minister Counsellor (Political) since April 2025. Most recently Stuart was Assistant Secretary for Fiji and Vanuatu after eight months as Chargé d’Affaires in Suva, Fiji (2023). Stuart has been previously posted to Tokyo as Political Counsellor (2022-23) and First Secretary Political (2016-2020) and to Solomon Islands and Malaysia.
In Canberra, his roles have included Chief of Staff to the Minister for International Development and the Pacific, and Senior Adviser to the Foreign Minister. He also led DFAT’s Executive Branch Risk Management team which coordinated DFAT’s COVID-19 response. This team was recognised with both an Australian Day and Gender Equality Award for their outstanding efforts.
Stuart has two children and is a keen sportsperson interested in tennis, cricket, soccer, and rugby.
Andrew Deitz
Minister-Counsellor (Economic) & Senior Treasury Representative
Japan and Republic of Korea
Andrew Deitz has been the Minister-Counsellor (Economic) & Senior Treasury Representative, representing the Australian Government in Japan and Republic of Korea since October 2023.
Prior to his appointment, Andrew was the Assistant Secretary of the Indo-Pacific Branch in the Australian Treasury’s International Economics and Security Division, leading Treasury’s engagement in support of Australia’s economic, security and development priorities across the Indo-Pacific.
From 2021, Andrew served as the Assistant Secretary of the Investment Review Branch in Treasury’s Foreign Investment Division, where he oversaw the assessment of the national interest and national security implications of all foreign investment applications made under Australia’s foreign investment framework. Andrew earlier served as the Assistant Secretary of the Policy & National Security Branch in the Foreign Investment Division, with responsibility for the foreign investment legislative framework. In that role he oversaw the design and implementation of the Government’s 2020 national security reforms to the foreign investment framework, the most significant reforms since its commencement in 1975.
Since joining the Treasury in 2009, Andrew has worked across the department on national security policy, competition policy, the Commonwealth Budget and superannuation regulation. Prior to Treasury, Andrew commenced his career at the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission where he worked on price monitoring and economic regulation across a range of industries, most extensively telecommunications where he led advice to the then government on the creation of Australia’s National Broadband Network.
Captain Josh Wilkinson, RAN
Defence Attaché
Captain Wilkinson has been the Defence Attaché to Japan since July 2023. As the Head of Australian Defence Staff – Tokyo, he leads a team that is engaged with all aspects of the Australia-Japan defence relationship.
Captain Wilkinson has had a series of postings in Japan, including the Advanced Course of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Command and Staff College, the National Institute of Defense Studies General Course. From 2019 to 2021 he was the inaugural Chief of Staff in the expanded Defence Section of the Australian Embassy Tokyo.
Captain Wilkinson has previously served in sea-going roles on the Collins Class submarines, HMAS Rankin and HMAS Farncomb. He also completed an operational deployment to the Persian Gulf in 2001 onboard the frigate HMAS Anzac. Ashore, he has worked in submarine projects and explosive ordnance technical regulation including postings in the United States, United Kingdom and Belgium.
Captain Wilkinson joined the Royal Australian Navy in 1997. He has a Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Systems) with Honours from the University of Tasmania, a Master of Science in Explosive Ordnance Engineering from the Royal Military College of Science and a Master of Arts in Strategy and Policy from the University of New South Wales.
Susan Jones
Counsellor (Education and Research)
Ms Susan Jones commenced her posting at the Australian Embassy Tokyo in August 2025. Susan has extensive experience representing the Australian Government at senior levels across a wide range of International and multilateral fora, including being Australia’s office to the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) in 2016 and the Secretary of the Foreign Law enforcement Community in China from 2018-19.
Susan engages with stakeholders across the education and research spectrum with a focus on education policy and driving research partnerships. She has a wide range of experience across the Department of Education including in International and Schools Groups and was most recently a Director in the Anti-Bullying Rapid Review taskforce, supporting expert co-chairs to look to report to Education Ministers with options for the development of a consistent national standard for responding to bullying and its underlying causes in schools. Previously she has had roles in the Department of Home Affairs, Australian Border Force and the Department of Employment after undertaking a Graduate Program with the Australian Government in 2008.
Susan was posted to Beijing in 2017-2020 for Australian Border Force. She drove engagement between Australia and China and Korea focusing on customs and trade issues. She has a Bachelor of Arts (International Relations and Indonesian Language) and a Graduate Diploma in National Security Studies.
James Strachan
Counsellor (Agriculture)
Mr James Strachan commenced his posting at the Australian Embassy, Tokyo, in January 2025.
James engages with stakeholders across agriculture, fisheries and forestry issues with a focus on trade and cooperation. Most recently, he was the Director North Asia in the Trade & International Division managing engagement with North Asian markets, including Japan. Prior to working at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, James worked for New Zealand’s Ministry of Primary Industries, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, and with the Department of Defence. He also worked for professional services firm EY in both Australia and globally, advising government and private clients in the mining, energy, defence and finance sectors.
James has a Bachelor of Economics and a Bachelor of Arts (Government Studies and Russian Language) from the University of Queensland, a Masters of Science (Operations Research and Statistics) from the University of New South Wales (ADFA) and a Graduate Diploma from the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia. He has a post graduate certificate in International Security from Stanford University and a post graduate certificate in Chartered Accounting from Deakin University. He is a Chartered Accountant. James is accompanied by his wife, Erica, and four children. When he is not working, he enjoys rugby and baseball.
Dan Glover
Counsellor (Industry, Science, Resources)
Dan joined the team in January 2024 and leads Australia’s engagement with Japan on resources trade, manufacturing and critical technologies, as well as supporting science collaboration.
Prior to joining the Embassy, Dan worked on oil and gas policy at Australia’s Department of Industry, Science and Resources, with a focus on negotiations with Timor-Leste on the shared Greater Sunrise gas fields. He has previously worked as an adviser to Australia’s Minister for Industry, Science and Technology and as a media and government adviser in the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.
Before working in government, Dan was a radio journalist with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Dan serves as a Public Affairs Officer in Australia’s Army Reserve, alongside his civilian career.