Brett Hackett News Today

A former Australian ambassador to Argentina is among the three key appointments made by Challenger Exploration (ASX: CEL) as it beefs up its capability backing the growing Hualilan gold project in San Juan province, Argentina.

Australia will shut its residential embassy in Afghanistan before its troops leave the country, amid concerns of an expected worsening security situation. Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Foreign Minister Marise Payne said in a Tuesday statement the embassy building in the capital Kabul will be closed on Friday. Diplomats will visit Afghanistan “regularly from a residential post elsewhere in the region.” The new arrangement “does not alter our commitment to Afghanistan or its people,” ...