The Washington Diplomat

Appointments - March 2008

Argentina
Mariano Enrico departed the post of first secretary in August.

Gustavo A. Torres assumed the position of minister in August.

Austria
Andreas Riecken assumed the position of deputy chief of mission on Jan. 21, replacing Harald Günther, who departed the post at the end of 2007.

Israel
Maj. Gen. Benjamin Gantz assumed the position of defense and defense cooperation attaché on Dec. 24, replacing Maj. Gen. Dan Harel, who departed the post on Aug. 7.

Malaysia
Afdal Izal Hashim assumed the position of second secretary on Dec. 31, having previously served as assistant secretary in the Americas Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Namibia
Julia Imene-Chanduru assumed the position of first secretary on Jan. 1, replacing Pahnkeni Titus, who departed the post on Nov. 30.

Romania
Adrian Vierita became ambassador of Romania to the United States on Jan. 22. Prior to his current assignment, Ambassador Vierita served as state secretary for European affairs with the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2006-08) and as ambassador to Germany (2002-06). A career diplomat, Ambassador Vierita joined the Foreign Service 1991. Since then, he has held various executive positions with the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including chief of staff to the state secretary coordinating relations with Asia, Africa, Middle East and Latin America; deputy director of the United Nations and International Organizations Directorate; director of the Central and Southeast Europe Directorate; and general director for European and trans-Atlantic affairs. Other postings abroad include a four-year tour with the Permanent Mission of Romania to the International Organizations in Vienna, where he covered negotiations in the Organization for Security and Cooperation related to the CFE Treaty and Black Sea security issues, as well as trafficking in persons and trans-border crime. In addition, Ambassador Vierita served as Romania’s deputy permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency and to the U.N. Industrial Development Organization. He was also a visiting lecturer at the European College for Liberal Arts in Berlin and co-authored the book “Romania in the United Nations Organization.” Ambassador Vierita holds a master’s degree from the Polytechnic University in Bucharest, and he graduated from the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna’s program of post-academic studies in international affairs and European integration, as well as from the Romanian Institute of International Studies in Bucharest where he specialized in international affairs and world economy. At present, he is a doctorial candidate in economic sciences at the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest. He is married to Codrina Eugenia Vierita and has two children.