First Presidency announces 2022-2023 area leadership assignments

7 April 2022, 3:42 p.m. MDT

President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, center, and his counselors, President Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor in the First Presidency, second from right, and President Henry B. Eyring, second counselor in the First Presidency, right, arrive for the women’s session of the 192nd Annual General Conference at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, April 2, 2022. Spenser Heaps, Deseret News

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced the Church’s 2022-2023 area leadership assignments and the creation of a third area in Europe.

The former Europe and Europe East areas are being realigned, resulting in Europe Central, Europe North and Europe East areas.

The area presidency changes will become effective Aug. 1, 2022, with the exception of the three Europe area presidencies, which are effective immediately.

The three Europe areas will be as follows:

Europe Central Area: Germany (location of the area office), Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, France, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
Europe East Area: Russia (location of the area office), Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
Europe North Area: United Kingdom (location of the area office), Cape Verde, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Portugal and Sweden.

At this time, Ukraine and Moldova will be separate and overseen by Elder Kyrylo Pokhylko, an Area Seventy, in his role as an assistant to the Europe North Area Presidency.

With realignment and addition of a third Europe area, the Church now has 23 total areas — six that cover the United States and Canada and the remaining 17 outside of those two North American countries.

All members of the area presidencies are General Authority Seventies or Area Seventies — there are five Area Seventies among the total 23 area presidents and 46 counselors, including the three who comprise the Europe East Area presidency.

In recent years, the Presidency of the Seventy assignments have changed with the Aug. 1 area assignments; however, the Presidency of the Seventy remains unchanged for 2022-2023.

As President Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor in the First Presidency, explained during the sustaining of Church leaders in the Saturday afternoon session of April 2022 general conference, the extended releases of the outgoing Relief Society and Primary general presidencies are effective Aug. 1, 2022.

The newly sustained Relief Society and Primary general presidency — “to be effective on Aug. 1, 2022,” as President Oaks said — are President Camille N. Johnson as president of the Relief Society, with Sister J. Anette Dennis and Sister Kristin M. Yee as counselors, and President Susan H. Porter as president of the Primary, with Sister Amy A. Wright and Sister Tracy Y. Browning as counselors.

Beginning in 1984, the Church established areas to direct the work in geographic locations. The area presidencies for the United States and Canada work from Church headquarters; area presidencies outside of the United States and Canada operate from area offices in each assigned area. The Church’s Middle East/Africa North Area is administered from headquarters.

The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles acts under the direction of the First Presidency “to build up the Church, and regulate all the affairs of the same in all nations. …

“The Seventy are to act in the name of the Lord, under the direction of the Twelve … in building up the Church and regulating all the affairs of the same in all nations” (Doctrine and Covenants 107:33-34).