IN A significant expansion of its international news coverage, The Irish Times has announced plans to establish a full time bureau in Beijing.
Conor O'Clery has been appointed Asia Correspondent and will move to Beijing later this spring to make arrangements for the opening of the bureau. It will be Ireland's first news bureau in the Far East and O'Clery's brief will include developments within the People's Republic of China as well as economic, political and social change throughout the region.
Conor O'Clery joined The Irish Times as a sub editor in 1972, becoming Northern Editor a year later. He subsequently served as News Editor, London Editor and Moscow Correspondent. He has been Washington Correspondent for the past five years.
Joe Carroll, currently Parliamentary Correspondent, has been appointed to take over from Conor O'Clery as Washington Correspondent.
Formerly Foreign Editor of The Irish Press (1968 to 1972), press officer with the EEC Commission (1973 to 1981) and a reporter with The Sunday Tribune and RTE's Today Tonight, he joined The Irish Times as a reporter in April 1986, going on to become Diplomatic Correspondent in October of that year and subsequently Religious Affairs Correspondent.
Mark Brennock has been appointed Foreign Affairs Correspondent and will be concentrating particularly this year on Ireland's forthcoming presidency of the EU. He joined The Irish Times as a reporter in 1986 and has since worked as a political reporter, as Northern Editor and as a deputy news editor. During the past two years he has reported from Rwanda, former Yugoslavia and the Middle East.