URU, Alm.del - 2012-13 - Bilag 153: Invitation til møde med ICRCs præsident Peter Maurer

Peter Maurerwas born in Thun, Switzerland, in 1956. He studied history and international law in Bern, where he wasawarded a doctorate. In 1987 he entered the Swiss diplomatic service, where he held various positions in Bern andPretoria before being transferred to New York in 1996 as deputy permanent observer at the Swiss mission to the UnitedNations. In 2000 he was appointed ambassador and head of the human security division in the political directorate of theSwiss Department of Foreign Affairs in Bern.In 2004 Mr Maurer was appointed ambassador and permanent representative of Switzerland to the United Nations inNew York. In this position, he worked to integrate Switzerland, which had only recently joined the United Nations, intomultilateral networks. In June 2009, the UN General Assembly elected Mr Maurer chairman of the Fifth Committee, incharge of administrative and budgetary affairs. In addition, he was elected chairman of the Burundi configuration of theUN Peacebuilding Commission. In January 2010 Mr Maurer was appointed secretary of State for foreign affairs in Bernand took over the reins of the Swiss Department of Foreign Affairs, with its five directorates and some 150 Swissdiplomatic missions around the world. He succeeded Jakob Kellenberger as ICRC president on 1 July 2012.