Ric Smith

Richard Campbell "Ric" Smith (born 8 March 1944) is a former senior Australian public servant and diplomat. He served as the Australian Ambassador to China (1996–2000), Australian Ambassador to Indonesia during the time of the 2002 Bali bombings (2001–2002), and Secretary of the Department of Defence (2002–2006). In April 2009, Smith was appointed as Australia's Special Envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Smith joined the Department of External Affairs in 1969 (later Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT)) and served in New Delhi, Tel Aviv and Manila.

In the 1998 Australia Day Honours, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia "for service to international relations and to the development of policy approaches to sanctions, human rights, defence and trade issues". He was awarded the Centenary Medal on 1 January 2001 "for a significant contribution over many years to international relations".

He served as the Australian Ambassador to the Republic of Indonesia (2001–2002), and extended his period of office when he learnt of the bombings in Bali on 12 October 2002.

Returning to Australia in November 2002, Smith served as the Secretary of the Department of Defence until his retirement from the public service in December 2006; his initial 3-year term was extended for a further two years when he expressed his desire to retire "in two years' time". He also became a visiting fellow at the Lowy Institute for International Policy in Sydney, publishing his first report for them in October 2008.

From March to June 2009, Smith was the Australian Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars in Washington DC.

Smith is also a board member of the Energy and Minerals Institute, and was one of the Conference Chairs at The Reluctant Super Power Conference.