CANBERRA, Australia - Britain's new High Commissioner to Australia on Tuesday said he is looking forward to building on the long-standing relationship between the two nations.

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According to High Commissioner Paul Madden, the relationship between the Britain and Australia is reinforced by many personal ties.

"Australia and the UK are close partners across a very wide range of areas including defense, security, economics, trade and investment and in international groupings such as the United Nations, the G20 and the Commonwealth," he said in a statement released on Tuesday.

"Millions of our citizens visit each other's countries and although we're on opposite sides of the globe we always feel like neighbors."

His first task as high commissioner in Australia was to attend Monday's cricket match between the Prime Minister's XI and England in Canberra, and Madden told Australia Associated Press that he is delighted to see England winning in Australia after so many years.

Madden was previously Britain's High Commissioner to Singapore.

Madden succeeded Baroness Valerie Amos who vacated the post late in 2010.