Geneva
The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, announced on 23 November the appointment of Ján Kubiš, UNECE Executive Secretary since 2009, as his Special Representative and head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan(UNAMA).
Ján Kubiš, 59, succeeds Staffan de Mistura who completes his term on 31 December 2011. He intends to assume his new responsibilities in the second half of January 2012.
Announcing the appointment in a statement, the Secretary-General noted that Mr. Kubiš has more than three decades of experience in diplomacy, foreign security policy and international economic relations.
On 5 December, a major international conference on Afghanistan’s future direction will be held in Bonn, Germany, focusing on helping the country on the path towards greater democracy, stability, security and economic development.