| Embassy of Australia, Washington, D.C. | |
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| Coordinates | |
| Location | Washington, D.C. |
| Address | 1601 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. |
| Ambassador | Kim Beazley |
The Embassy of Australia in Washington, D.C. is the diplomatic mission of the Commonwealth of Australia to the United States. The chancery is located on Embassy Row at 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, at Scott Circle in Washington, D.C.[1]
The current ambassador of Australia to the United States is Kim Beazley, who succeeded Dennis Richardson. He resides at the Australian ambassador's residence located at 3140 Cleveland Avenue, NW.[2][3] The current Deputy Chief of Mission is Graham Fletcher, a senior career officer with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. In addition to the embassy, Australian consulates are located in New York City, Atlanta, Chicago, Honolulu, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.[4]
The embassy has featured Australian wine tastings, exhibitions of ceramics by Gwyn Hanssen Pigott, sketches of World War II soldiers by Louis Kahan, paintings of Aboriginal women, and paintings of the Outback by Ben Shearer. A gallery located inside the embassy is open from 10am until 2pm on weekdays.[5][6][7][8][9]
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Located behind the chancery building was a memorial to the World War II United States Army soldiers who died during the Bakers Creek air crash, the deadliest air disaster in Australian history.[10] Because host countries typically exercise limited jurisdiction over embassies, the Bakers Creek Memorial Association petitioned American politicians to relocate the memorial to Arlington National Cemetery.
Senators Arlen Specter and Bob Casey, Jr. of Pennsylvania inserted language into the 2008 defense authorization bill to relocate the memorial.[10][11][12] On June 11, 2009, a dedication ceremony took place at the memorial's new home in Fort Myer, Virginia, near the Selfridge Gate to Arlington National Cemetery.[13][14][15]