Credit: Chronicle.lu
On Thursday 30 October 2025, the Cercle Cité in Luxembourg City was the venue for an event to celebrate 55 years of Luxembourg - Australia diplomatic relations.
Titled "A Night down under the stars", the event attracted around 130 people from diplomatic, business, political, cultural and social circles. Among the notable attendees were the ambassadors of Britain, Japan, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Czechia and Rwanda, as well as various business leaders.
David Brightling, Deputy Ambassador at the Australia, opened proceedings and referenced the traditional owners of the land by recognising the first nations people of Australia.
Angus Campbell, Australia Ambassador to Belgium, Luxembourg, the EU and NATO, welcomed everyone and referenced the 55th anniversary and looked forward to the next 55 years, mentioning shared aspirations. He talked about historical wisdom and mentioned what can be found in the skies can also be found in the ground beneath us, adding about “sky country” and “land country”.
He also talked about using ancient skills to forecast the weather and climate, and referenced the meteorite (that created the Yarrabubba crater 2 billion years ago) and the space industry.
He recalled the start of diplomatic relations 55 years ago between the two countries, mentioning topics such as human rights and the two countries being “like-minded partners”. He said that Luxembourg remains an attractive destination for Australian investment which currently stands at €24 billion. He also mentioned educational collaborations between the two countries as well as space industry partnerships; he then mentioned a number of personnel from the Australian armed forces in attendance, who had just completed a secondment at the Ramstein US base in Germany.
Luxembourg’s Minister of Finance, Gilles Roth, spoke in English and said that the partnership had been practical and based on the rule of law, with cooperation across finance, trade and innovation. He stayed that Australia and Luxembourg are both forward looking and results-oriented, with finance a high-impact area of collaboration.
He confided that today the world is going through unstable times, with finance leading to long-term growth, with both visible and invisible threats meaning that Europe must invest in all types of security, leading to new growth.
He mentioned that the finance sector here employs 73,000 people directly, and the same number again indirectly, with the space sector in a growth phase.
He revealed that Luxembourg will send a trade delegation to Australia in (November) 2026 with a focus on finance.
Rachel Palmer, CEO of Macquarie EMEA, the evening main sponsor, talked briefly about the relationship between the two countries being based on trust and shared values, also referencing the space sector and the role that institutional investors play. She mentioned that 2025 is Macquarie’s 20th year of operating in Luxembourg. She concluded by mentioning the strength when countries work together to shape the future.
To conclude the formalities, Ambassador Campbell toasted the next 55 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The event continued with a networking cocktail with live music from a three-piece band, during which attendees could browse a ten-panel exhibition of “Australia in Space” in the Salon Bleu, and also a short film by the Australian Space Agency.
ED
UPDATE to correct the name of one of the speakers.
(L-R): Ambassador Angus Campbell; Minister Gilles Roth; Rachel Palmer, Macquarie
Credit: Chronicle.lu
