Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Kamina Johnson Smith is today (December 17) expressing shock and regret at the sudden passing of German Ambassador to Jamaica, Dr Stefan Friedrich Keil.

Senator Johnson Smith, in a statement on Friday, hailed Dr Keil as a man keen on strengthening bilateral ties between Jamaica and Germany.

“During my meeting with Ambassador Keil in August, we spoke of working together on areas of mutual interest at the bilateral and multilateral levels. It was heartening that he was cognizant of the special challenges faced by Small Island Developing States like Jamaica,” she remarked.

According to the minister, Ambassador Keil was also accredited as Permanent Representative of Germany to the Kingston-headquartered International Seabed Authority (ISA), and actively participated in the meetings of the 26 Session of the ISA Council and Assembly, which ended earlier this week on December 14.

A lawyer-turned-diplomat, Keil died on Thursday after falling ill at the German Embassy in Kingston.

He was 63.

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