Karis appoints Riina Kaljurand as Estonia’s new ambassador to China

Estonian President Alar Karis has appointed Riina Kaljurand as the country’s new ambassador to China and recalled Hannes Hanso, ERR reported.

The decision, signed on September 3, appoints Kaljurand as Estonia’s ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the People’s Republic of China, based in Beijing. Hanso is reportedly set to become Estonia’s ambassador to the United States.

Kaljurand served as Estonia’s ambassador to Georgia, based in Tbilisi, from 2020 to 2024, and also covered Armenia in that role.

She began working at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1993. From 2004 to 2007, she worked at the Ministry of Defence, followed by a position at the International Centre for Defence and Security until 2018. Kaljurand directed the Lennart Meri International Conference on Security from 2013 to 2018 before returning to the Foreign Ministry’s policy planning department.

In 2019, President Kersti Kaljulaid awarded Kaljurand the Order of the White Star, fourth class. She holds a master’s degree in political science from Stockholm University.