Geir Pedersen will be appointed the special envoy of the UN Secretary General on Syria
Moscow. January 7. INTERFAX.RU — the Norwegian Ambassador Geir Pedersen on Monday takes office as the special envoy of the UN Secretary General on Syria.
Pedersen was appointed to the post of UN Secretary-General, antónio Guterres, on 31 October 2018, after predecessor Geir Pedersen — Staffan de Mistura — has announced his retirement.
Guterres noted that “Mr. Pedersen will support the parties in Syria, contributing to a comprehensive and credible political solution that meets the democratic aspirations of the Syrian people.” Shortly before the resignation, Staffan de Mistura, called the Pedersen superb specialist.
Geir Pedersen held the position of special envoy of Norway to the UN from 2012 to 2017. In 2017, he was appointed Ambassador of his country in China.
Italian diplomat Staffan de Mistura, who held the post of UN special envoy on Syria July 2014, announced his intention to resign on 17 October, justifying this decision with personal reasons.