Global Dialogues

The Future of Democracy: A U.S. and International Perspective

Democracy has always been and continues to be challenged both in the United States and around the world. As former Secretary of Homeland Security, General Counsel of the Department of Defense and a distinguished Attorney, Secretary Johnson has been deeply involved in the challenges to democracy in the United States. Globally, democratic values and principles are always at risk. As U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Under Secretary of the Army and Professor of Politics Science, Dr. Westphal has been engaged in addressing these risks.

Foreign and Domestic Policies and the Challenges of a Divided Nation

Joseph W. Westphal

Ambassador Joseph W. Westphal is the Chang Sun Term Professor at the Joseph H. Lauder Institute of Management and International Studies at The Wharton School of The University of Pennsylvania.

He is also a Senior Fellow at the Center for Leadership and Change Management at Wharton, Fellow at the National Academy of Public Administration and Non-Resident Fellow at the International Studies Center of the Catholic University of Chile.

Ambassador Westphal has had a long and distinguished career in government and academia.

Dr. Westphal was the U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from March 2014 to January 2017.

Prior to this appointment, Ambassador Westphal was the Under Secretary of the Army and its Chief Management Officer from 2009 to 2014. He also held the positions of Assistant Secretary of the Army (Head of the Army Corps of Engineers) from 1998 to 2000 and Acting Secretary of the Army in 2001.

Dr. Westphal began his career in 1975 as a professor of political science at Oklahoma State University and later served as a Department Head. In 2002 he became the Chancellor of the University of Maine System and Professor of Political Science. He also served as Director of the Tishman Environmental Center and Provost at the New School University in New York and Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University in Washington D.C.

In government, he worked in both the House and Senate for more than twelve years. In Congress, he worked on Committee staff, as staff director of a large bicameral and bipartisan caucus and on Members personal staff.

He has held positions in the administrations of Presidents Carter, Reagan, Clinton, Bush, and Obama, working in the Department of the Interior, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Defense and the Department of State.

Dr. Westphal has served on numerous Presidential Commissions and Task Forces, Non-Profit and Public Boards and Advisory Panels.

Ambassador Westphal received a B.A. from Adelphi University (1970), an M.A. from Oklahoma State University (1973), and his Ph.D. from the University of Missouri-Columbia (1980).

Leon Panetta

A Monterey native and Santa Clara University School of Law graduate, Secretary Panetta began his long and distinguished public service career in 1964 as a First Lieutenant in the United States Army, and upon discharge went to work in Washington as a legislative assistant to United States Senate Minority Whip Tom Kuchel of California. In 1969, he was appointed director of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare’s Office for Civil Rights, where he was responsible for enforcing equal education laws. Later, he served as executive assistant to the mayor of New York City. He then returned to Monterey, where he practiced law until his election to the United States House of Representatives in 1976.

Serving in Congress for sixteen years, Secretary Panetta was a key participant in agriculture, healthcare, ocean and federal budget issues. From 1989 to 1993, he chaired the House Budget Committee. He authored a wide range of legislation, including the Hunger Prevention Act of 1988, Medicare and Medicaid coverage for hospice care for the terminally ill, and numerous measures to protect the California coast, including creation of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.

India-US: Estranged Democracies to Engaged Democracies

Sandeep Chakravorty, a member of the Indian Foreign Service since 1996, has served in India’s missions in several countries. Prior to becoming Consul General of India in New York in August 2017, he was India’s Ambassador to Peru and Bolivia. Earlier, he had been India’s Deputy Chief of Mission in Bangladesh. He has also served in Indian embassies in Madrid, Spain, and Bogota, Colombia. He has held several positions in India’s Ministry of External Affairs, including press relations officer, and worked on desks dealing with Central Asia, East Asia and China.

Before joining the government, Chakravorty worked with civil society organizations dealing with natural resources and environmental issues.
Chakravorty, who speaks Hindi, Bangla and Spanish fluently, has a master’s degree in Advanced Studies in International Security from Geneva University, as well as a master’s in Sociology and a postgraduate diploma in Forestry Management. He is also graduate of Delhi University with a physics degree.

The Role of the UN in the Search for Global Solutions to Global Problems

His Excellency Charles Thembani Ntwaagae, who served as permanent secretary in Botswana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation since 2006, was appointed to his current post in 2008. From 2001 to 2005, he was his country’s permanent representative to the United Nations office in Geneva with concurrent accreditation to Austria and Greece. Ambassador Ntwaagae was deputy permanent secretary in the Foreign Ministry between 1996 and 2001. Prior to that, he was chief executive at the National Secretariat of the National Conservation Strategy (Coordinating) Agency, charged with promoting conservation and sustainable utilization of Botswana’s natural resource base.

Earlier, he was deputy permanent secretary in the Ministry of Local Government, Lands and Housing. He is also a fellow of the Economic Development Institute of the World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund.

Ambassador Ntwaagae has a master’s degree from Pennsylvania State University and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Botswana and Swaziland.

Europe’s Agenda: Migration, Terrorism and Global Challenges

Mr. Vrailas studied economics at the University of Athens and interned at the European Commission. He joined the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1985 and graduated from the Ministry’s Centre of Diplomatic Studies a year later. His first assignment was with the Department of European Community affairs, dealing with relations between the European Community and the Mediterranean countries. He was seconded to the Permanent Representation of Greece to the EC during the Greek Presidency in 1988 as a national representative in the Mediterranean Working Group. He used his time in Brussels also to obtain a certificate of European Studies from the Université Libre de Bruxelles.

From 1989 to 1991, Mr. Vrailas was Assistant to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Afterward, he moved to the Permanent Mission of Greece to the UN, where he covered mainly Security Council issues and was the Mission’s coordinator during the Greek Presidency in 1994.

From 1996 to 1999, he was the Deputy Chief of Mission of the Embassy of Greece in Tehran. Upon his return to Athens, he was appointed European Correspondent, a position which he held until January 2004, including during the Greek Presidency in the first semester of 2003.

Mr. Vrailas continued to cover CFSP/ESDP affairs in Brussels (2004-08), where he was Deputy Representative to the Political and Security Committee, as well as Representative to the Political-Military Group. Subsequently, he was appointed Chief Coordinator of the Greek Permanent Representation to the EU for external relations and all other COREPER II issues (2008-09).

In August 2009, he was appointed Deputy Chief of Mission of the Embassy of Greece in Washington, until he became Deputy Head of the Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations in July 2011.

Small State Actor with Big Global Engagement

Ib Petersen has served as Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Denmark to the United Nations since August 1, 2013. Before taking up his new position, Ambassador Petersen served as State Secretary for Development Policy of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 2009. Prior to this, Petersen was State Secretary for Development Cooperation, Middle East, Africa, Asia, Latin America and the United Nations from 2007-2009.

Petersen has held a number of senior management positions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs including Under Secretary for Bilateral Development Cooperation (2004-2007), Head of Department, Policy and Planning (2001-2004) and Deputy Head of Department, Development Policy and Planning (1998-2001). From 1995 to 1998 he served as Deputy Head of the Danish Embassy in Zimbabwe, and from 1988-1991 as Advisor to the Nordic Executive Director on the Board of the World Bank in Wahington D.C. He joined the Danish Foreign Service in 1985.

United Nation’s Diplomat Visit
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Ambassador Jan Eliasson took office as Deputy Secretary-General on July 1, 2012. Ambassador Eliasson has held many positions within the UN and in the Swedish Foreign Ministry.  He served as the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Darfur (2007-2008) and served as the Secretary-General’s Personal Representative for Iran/Iraq.  He was the first UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs.  In that position, he was involved in operations in Africa and the Balkans and led important UN initiatives on landmines, conflict prevention and humanitarian action. He has served on mediation missions for the UN and the OSCE.

In his national capacity, Ambassador Eliasson has served as the Foreign Minister of Sweden (2006) and he was Sweden’s Ambassador to the US from September 2000 to July 2005.  Ambassador Eliasson served from 1994 to 2000 as State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, a key position in formulating and implementing Swedish foreign policy. He was Sweden’s Ambassador to the UN in New York from 1988 to 1992.

Prevention of Genocide and Mass Atrocities in Africa: The Case of the Two Sudans

The permanent representative of South Sudan to the United Nations, who carries a humanitarian background spanning back to the 1960s, Francis M. Deng, Ph.D., has a history in conflict management, human rights and the prevention of genocide. In 2007, Dr. Deng was selected by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as his special adviser on the prevention of genocide at the level of under-secretary-general. He also served from 1992-2004 as representative of the U.N. secretary-general on internally displaced persons. In 2011, Foreign Policy magazine named him one of its Top 100 Global Thinkers, the same year he was appointed Permanent Representative from South Sudan to the United Nations.

Brave New World—Global Tendencies, Challenges and Opportunities from Central European Perspectives

Ambassador to the United Nations since 2010, Kőrösi first joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1983. He was a desk officer for the Protocol Department, Middle East Department and the Departments of North America, North Europe and Israel. Kőrösi’s work with Israel continued when he was made deputy chief of mission at the Hungarian Embassy in Tel Aviv in 1995. Throughout the last decade, he has been the head of the 1st and 2nd European Departments in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He served as Deputy State Secretary in charge of Multilateral Diplomacy, as the head of the NATO-WEU (North Atlantic Treaty Organization-Western European Union). Before representing Hungary in the United Nations, Kőrösi was Ambassador of the Republic of Hungary to the Hellenic Republic of Greece from 2002-2006.

Climate Change and Sustainability

St. Aimee began his diplomatic career in 1980, as a Foreign Service Officer with the Ministry of External Affairs. In 1982, he was made Chargé d’affaires at the Permanent Mission of Saint Lucia to the United Nations, the Organization of American States and the United States of America, a position he held until 1985. While at the United Nations, he served as Vice President of the Economic and Social Council.

Following that he served as an international civil servant for 19 years with the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). From 1985 to 1996, he was Secretary to the Commission’s Caribbean Development and Cooperation Committee, and from 1996 to 2004, to the Commission’s Caribbean Council for Science and Technology.

He has held two teaching posts, including as a graduate teacher at Vieux Port Senior Secondary School, Saint Lucia, from 1976 to 1978, and research assistant at the College of the Virgin Islands, St. Croix, from 1974 to 1976. From 1962 to 1969, St. Aimee worked at the Saint Lucia Ministry of Agriculture as an Agricultural Extension Officer.

He holds a certificate in agriculture from Florida A&M University and two degrees in marine biology from Fairleigh Dickinson University, New Jersey. He also holds a diploma in international relations from University of the West Indies, Trinidad, and a Doctor of Philosophy in political science from the City University of New York.

The World from the Perspective of Sri Lanka

Dr. Kohona was a member of the UN General Assembly where he led official-level delegations to a wide range of countries on bilateral matters for four years. Currently, he is co-chair of the UN Ad Hoc Working Group on Marine Resources beyond National Jurisdiction and chair of the Ad-Hoc Committee on the Indian Ocean. Dr. Kohona is also the chair of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories. Prior to his service with the UN, Dr. Kohona was the secretary-general of Sri Lanka’s Government Peace Secretariat. As secretary-general, he participated in peace negotiations in Geneva with a Sri Lankan terrorist group, the Liberation Tigers Tamil Eelam, as well as led the delegation to talks in Oslo.

An Austrian Perspective from the Security Council: Human Rights and Rule of Law

Thomas Mayr-Harting served as the director general of political affairs for the Foreign Ministry of Austria. Prior to that position, he completed a four-year term as Austrian ambassador to Belgium, and head of the Austrian Mission to NATO. He also chaired the supervisory board of the Austrian Development Agency.

Mr. Mayr-Harting joined the Austrian diplomatic service in 1979. His distinguished career includes serving with the Austrian Mission to the European Communities in Brussels, the Austrian Embassy in Moscow, and the Private Office of the Austrian Foreign Minister, among other notable positions and accomplishments. From 2002 to 2004, Mr. Mayr-Harting also acted as special representative of the Austrian Foreign Minister for the Western Balkans.

Mr. Mayr-Harting received his law degree at the University of Vienna in 1977. From 1977 to 1978, he studied European law at the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium. In 1978, he received his diploma from The Hague Academy of International Law.

International Security: The Roles of the UN, NATO and the EU

From 2001 until the summer of 2005, Herman Schaper was Deputy Director-General for Political Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague. As of 1 September 2005 he is the Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to NATO.

Ambassador Herman Schaper, NATO Permanent Representative of the Netherlands. His previous positions at the Ministry Foreign Affairs and abroad include Director of the European Affairs Department, Director of the Security Policy Department, Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN and Deputy Permanent Representative to NATO.

From 1981-1982 he represented the Democrats ’66 party in the Dutch Parliament. He had previously worked as a researcher at the Netherlands Society for International Affairs. He has published a dozen articles on Dutch foreign policy, European security and transatlantic relations.

Herman Schaper has a degree in modern history from the University of Leiden and a master’s in international relations from the University of Virginia (USA).

Dignified Foreign Policy

Jarmo Viinanen has been Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Finland to the United Nations since April 2009. His service in Finland’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA) began in 1988, when he became Vienna-based attaché for the Ministry’s administrative and political departments. Later, Ambassador Viinanen served as first secretary with MFA’s Department for External Trade Relations in 1997, adviser to the Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1998, and secretary general and chief of the Cabinet of the President of the Republic of Finland (2005-2009).

Women and Democratization: Challenges and Lessons Learned in Romania

Simona Miculescu is the Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary Permanent Representative of Romania to the UN. Her Ph.D. in Literature, her academic career as a professor of International Public Relations at two Romanian universities, and as publisher of several books and tens of articles, goes in parallel with her evolution in diplomacy. In Romania, she is known as one of the best experts in the area of management of international public relations and she developed the first curricula on this topic, which is now used in several Romanian universities.

Nigeria’s Strategic Role in West Africa

Ambassador Ogwu has a vast background in foreign affairs. She formerly served as the foreign minster of Nigeria, the second woman in Nigerian history to hold that position. Before her ministerial career, Ms. Ogwu became the first female director-general of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs. Ms. Ogwu served as presidential delegate and special adviser to the Nigerian delegation to the UN General assembly since 1988. Additionally, she serves on the UN Secretary General’s Advisory Board on Disarmament Matters and was formerly the chair of the Board of Trustees of the UN Institute for Disarmament Research.

She has authored several books on Nigerian foreign policy. Her work has been published extensively in Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Croatian. Ms. Ogwu is a voice for women’s development and human rights. She has written on the strengthening of relations between Africa and Latin America. In 2002, she received the Diplomatic Excellence Award presented by the Society of International Law and Diplomacy.

She received her B.A. and M.A. degrees in political science from Rutgers University before receiving her Ph.D., also in political science, from the University of Lagos in Nigeria.

Ending Sexual Violence: From Recognition to Action

Margot Wallström of Sweden is the United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict. In this capacity, she serves as Chair of the inter-agency network, UN Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict (UN Action). 

Ms. Wallström has been an advocate of the rights and needs of women throughout her political career — first as Minister in the Swedish Government and later as Environment Commissioner and Vice-President of the European Commission.

She was also co-founder of the European Union inter-institutional group of women and a key supporter of the 50-50 Campaign for Democracy by the European Women’s Lobby, where she worked to promote a more gender-balanced EU.

During her tenure at the European Commission, from 1999 to 2010, she was actively engaged in promoting the participation of women in peace and security-related issues, and calling for action to address the injustice and violence faced by women during armed conflict. Since 2007, she has served as Chair of the Council of Women World Leaders Ministerial Initiative, where she actively promoted the appointment of women to positions of responsibility. Ms. Wallström has long played a leadership role in raising awareness about the urgent need to implement United Nations Security Council resolutions 1325 (2000) and 1820 (2008).

The Middle East Peace Process

Ambassador Maged Abdelaziz has served as the permanent representative of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the United Nations (U.N.) since 2005. He has been instrumental to the establishment of the Human Rights Council and the Peacebuilding Commission of the U.N., and supported the growth and implementation of the Global Counter Terrorism strategy. In 2006, he became a member of the Troika of the Non-Aligned Movement, as well as the chair of the Political Committee in the High Official segment to prepare the 14th Summit of Heads of States and Governments of the Non-Aligned Movement in Havana, Cuba. Ambassador Maged Abdelaziz previously chaired the Egyptian delegation of the 2005 review conference of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and assisted in the negotiation and adoption of the 2005 Summit Outcome Document.

Ambassador Maged Abdelaziz has also served as a diplomatic adviser to Hosni Mubarak, president of the Arab Republic of Egypt and was the official spokesman of the Egyptian presidency. He was also the principal representative of Egypt regarding all disarmament issues and in the expert group of the U.N. Secretary General on the U.N. Register for Conventional Arms in 1997.

Ambassador Maged Abdelaziz graduated from the Law School of Ain Shams University in 1973.

Israel and the United Nations

Ambassador Daniel Carmon was born in Tel Aviv in 1951. In 1973, he began studies at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, where he was awarded a B.A. in International Relations. From 1996 to 2000, he served as Head of the Information and Internet Division in the Department of Public Affairs. Before his current posting, from 2000 to 2004, he served as Head of the Bureau for Coordination, and Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Director General’s Bureau.

The Road to Peace: A Palestinian Perspective

Since his youth, Ambassador Mansour has always been involved in Palestinian politics and began his career in the Palestinian diplomatic service in 1983 at the Permanent Observer Mission of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to the United Nations. He was appointed Ambassador and Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations in 2005.

Lessons of the Past, Visions of the Future

Dr. Palouš has held the position of permanent representative to the United Nations since 2006, and prior to that he served as Ambassador of the Czech Republic to the United States from 2001 to 2005. Other distinctions include his roles as deputy minister of foreign affairs for both the Czech Republic and the Federal Assembly of Czechoslovakia. Dr. Palouš was also a founding member of the Civic Forum, and a spokesman as well as signatory of Charter 77 – a document that led to the foundation of the most influential group of human rights activists in Czechoslovakia.

Along with his active role in international affairs, Dr. Palouš has held a number of teaching positions at institutions such as Charles University, the Centre for Theoretical Studies jointly by Charles University and the Czech Academy of Sciences, Northwestern University, the Central European University in Budapest, Adelphi University, and others. He has authored and contributed many works in the fields of political theory, philosophy, and post-communism.

Dr. Palouš received an M.A. in chemistry from Charles University in 1973, an M.A. in philosophy and social sciences in 1977, and a Ph.D. in public international law from Masaryk University in Brno in 2008.

Women and War: Victim or Peacemakers?

The European Union after the Lisbon Treaty

Mr. Schori has vast experience in foreign affairs, development cooperation, and peacekeeping operations. From 2007 to 2009, he served as director general of FRIDE, which stands for Fundacion para las Relaciones Internationales y el Dialogo Exterior, and is self-described as “a European think-tank for global action.” Prior to that position, he was a special representative of the United Nations Secretary-General, head of mission in Côte d’Ivoire, distinguished visiting professor at Adelphi University, and Swedish Ambassador to the United Nations. Mr. Schori has held several political leadership positions, including as a member of the Swedish Parliament and the European Parliament for the Swedish Social Democratic Group. He is also the chairperson of the Olof Palme Memorial Fund and the former chairperson of Swedish ECPAT (End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes).

A prolific author, his most recent book, The years of the Dragon’s Teeth – September 11, the Iraq War and the World after Bush (2008), presents the ins and outs of the diplomatic struggles in the United Nations during the Iraq crisis under the George W. Bush administration.

Peacebuilding: A New Challenge for the United Nations

The Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) is a new intergovernmental advisory body of the United Nations that supports peace efforts in countries emerging from conflict. Since its establishment in 2005, the PBC has commenced peacebuilding programs in Sierra Leone, Burundi, and Guinea-Bissau. Luxembourg has been elected to the Organizational Committee of the PBC, and Ambassador Hoscheit will share his personal reflections of the challenges and opportunities surrounding UN peacebuilding efforts.

Euro-Atlantic Integration: A Driving Agenda for Albania

Adrian Neritani has served as the Ambassador and permanent representative of the Mission of Albania to the United Nations since 2006. Prior to that, he was a Chicago-based attorney and independent consultant in international business and trade. From 1991 to 1999, he was a diplomat with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Albania.

The Changing Geo-Political Landscape of the Middle East: Implications for Diplomacy

Terje Rød-Larsen, president of the International Peace Academy since January 2005, serves concurrently as the United Nations Secretary-General’s special envoy for the implementation of Security Council Resolution 1559. A former academic, he founded the Fafo Institute for Applied Sciences in 1981 in Oslo, and, as its director, initiated research into Palestinians’ living conditions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. That led to secret PLO-Israel talks and the Oslo Accords of 1993. During the 1990s, he was a special adviser on Middle East affairs for the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and later its ambassador and special adviser on the Middle East peace process.

Economic and Sustainable Development: A Challenge for Africa

Zachary Muburi-Muita was appointed Kenya’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations in New York in 2006. He has pressed for the UN to begin work on a binding global treaty on small arms in Africa because economic development is dependent on peace and security. Previously, he served as Kenya’s high commissioner to Tanzania.

France: Perspectives on International Relations

Prior to his appointment as the French Ambassador to the United States, Ambassador Levitte was the French permanent representative to the United Nations. He served on the staff of two French Presidents and held various senior positions in the French Foreign Service. He previously served as deputy assistant secretary in the African Bureau and as deputy chief of staff to the foreign minister (1986-1988). He also served as the French permanent representative to the United Nations Office in Geneva (1988-1990). At the French Foreign Ministry, he served as assistant secretary for Asia, followed by undersecretary for cultural and scientific cooperation. Ambassador Levitte is a graduate of Sciences-Po (Institute for Political Science in Paris) and the National School of Oriental Languages, where he studied Chinese and Indonesian.

Chile and Latin America: Left or Right?

Heraldo Muñoz is a prominent Chilean politician and diplomat, the current Ambassador to the United Nations for Chile, and former cabinet member.

Can the International Criminal Court Make a Difference?

Ambassador Wenaweser has been working on United Nations issues for more than ten years. In 2004, he was appointed vice-chairman of the Open-Ended Working Group on Security Council Reform. He serves as the chairman of the Special Working Group on the Crime of Aggression of the Assembly of States Parties to the International Criminal Court. He is the past president of the Meeting of States Parties of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Ambassador Wenaweser received diplomatic training at the Permanent Mission of Liechtenstein to the United Nations and at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bern, Switzerland. He also completed a special training course for Swiss and Liechtenstein diplomats at the Institut Universitaire de Hautes Etudes Internationale, Geneva, Switzerland. He holds an undergraduate and graduate degree from Zurich University.

Prospects for Multi-lateral Diplomacy in the United Nations: A Russian Perspective

Prior to assuming his present post as permanent representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations in July 2004, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Andrey Denisov held such positions in the as senior counselor, Embassy of the Russian Federation in the People’s Republic of China; ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt; and deputy foreign minister. He graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations and holds a Ph.D. in economics.

Europeanization of the Balkans

Ambassador Theolin is the Major General, Head of Swedish delegation to the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission, Korea. He has also served as Ambassador of Sweden to the Republic of Croatia and Permanent Representative of Sweden to the United Nations Agencies in Rome, Italy.

Small Countries Diplomacy in the United Nations

Ambassador Adamantios Th. Vassilakis is a career diplomat. His previous posts include director-general for European Affairs and director of the Center for Analysis and Planning of the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as deputy permanent representative to the European Union (Brussels) and consul general in San Francisco. He studied political and diplomatic sciences at Free University of Brussels and is fluent in English and French.

The U.N. Security Council: Stalemate or Reform?

Mohamed Bennouna is ambassador and permanent representative of the Kingdom of Morocco to the United Nations. Prior to his appointment as permanent representative in 2001, Ambassador Bennouna served as a judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia as well as director-general of the Arab World Institute in Paris. An expert on economic sanctions, he has written numerous articles on such subjects as: peacekeeping and international security, law of the sea, developmental law, and international criminal law. He holds degrees in public law and political science from the University of Nancy, France and the Sorbonne in Paris; a diploma from The Hague Academy of International Law; and a doctorate in international law from the University of Nancy, France.

Threats, Challenges, and Change: Lessons From a Year at the United Nations

Ambassador Rock serves as the voice of Canadians at the United Nations in New York. He promotes a foreign policy that advances Canada’s security, culture, and values through multilateral cooperation, bringing a decade of experience in government and public policy to his position. As a member of Canada’s Parliament, he held a number of senior portfolios in the federal cabinet. He has been an outspoken advocate of human rights, human security, and reforming the United Nations.