UN Secretary-General appoints Bernardino León of Spain as Special Representative and Head of UNSMIL
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today the appointment of Mr. Bernardino León of Spain as his Special Representative and Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL).
The new Special Representative will succeed Mr. Tarek Mitri of Lebanon on 1 September 2014. The Secretary-General is grateful to Mr. Mitri for his dedication and leadership of UNSMIL.
Mr. León brings to this position many years of political and diplomatic experience with his national government and with the European Union, including most recently as European Union Special Representative for Libya and European Union Special Representative for the Southern Mediterranean (2011-2014).
Mr. León previously held several positions with the Spanish government, including Secretary-General at the Spanish Prime Minister’s Office (2008-2011) and Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (2004-2008). He also became Sherpa for the G20 in 2009.
Mr. León joined the Spanish diplomatic service in 1989 and was posted in Liberia, Algeria and Greece. He also served as Personal Adviser to the European Union Special Representative for the Middle East Peace Process (1998-2001). He has published extensively on the Arab world and its relationship with the West and lectured on these issues in several universities.
Mr. León was educated in Malaga and Barcelona, Spain.
Born in 1964, he is married and has three children.
(Source: UNSMIL)
