Sir John Allan Birch KCVO CMG (24 May 1935 – 6 May 2020) was a British diplomat who was knighted in 1993.
He was Head of Chancery in Kabul in 1973 before returning to London in 1977 as Counsellor at the Royal College of Defence Studies.
Later that year, John Birch was appointed Political Adviser at UKDEL CTB Geneva and moved in 1980 to Budapest as Counsellor/Head of Chancery.
From 1983 to 1986, he served at the FCO as Head of Eastern European Department before being posted to UKMIS New York City as Deputy Permanent Representative (with the personal rank of Ambassador).
He was Vice–Chairman of the Council of University College London, Chairman of the Advisory Board of the School of Slavonic and East European Studies and a member of the Royal Institute of International Affairs.