Bilal Zahid (source: Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office)
The UK has named Bilal Zahid as its next ambassador to Slovakia, with the veteran diplomat due to take up the post in September 2025, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) has announced.
Zahid will replace Nigel Baker, who has served in Bratislava since 2020 and will move on to a new appointment within the diplomatic service.
Currently undertaking full-time language training, Zahid brings almost two decades of civil service experience, much of it rooted in security, diplomacy, and Eastern European affairs. He most recently served as Minister Counsellor at the UK’s embassy in Kyiv, and prior to that as Joint Head of the Ukraine Campaign Unit in London—a role central to the UK’s response to the war in Ukraine.
His earlier postings include senior roles at the Northern Ireland Office, the Cabinet Office’s National Security Secretariat, and as Private Secretary for Foreign Affairs in the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office. His first diplomatic assignments were with the Northern Ireland Office as part of the government’s fast stream programme.
Zahid’s appointment signals a continuity of strategic focus on regional stability and UK engagement with EU member states, even after Brexit. The British embassy in Bratislava has maintained an active role in fostering bilateral cooperation on security, trade and cultural exchange.
The outgoing ambassador, Baker, departs after five years in Slovakia, during which he oversaw the embassy’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the fallout of Brexit, and the diplomatic challenges of the war in Ukraine, while also helping to deepen UK-Slovak ties in defence and education.
Zahid will formally assume his duties in the Slovak capital in early autumn.
