New Head of European Union Delegation Presents Letter of Appointment

(Based on information provided by the Protocol and Liaison Service)

The new Head of the Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations, João Vale de Almeida, presented his letter of appointment to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today.

From 2010 to 2014, he served as the first European Union Ambassador to the United States.  Prior to his appointment in Washington, he served as the Director-General for External Relations at the European Commission, the executive body of the European Union.

Between 2005 and 2010, he acted as European Union “Sherpa” for G8 and G20 Summits, preparing and attending G8 Summits in Gleneagles, United Kingdom; Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation; Heiligendamm, Germany; Toyako-Hokkaido, Japan; L’Aquila, Italy; and Muskoka, Canada.

Between 2004 and 2009, Mr. Vale de Almeida was the Chief of Staff and main adviser for European Commission President José Manuel Barroso.  Before that, he held a senior position in the Directorate General for Education and Culture, after serving as Deputy Chief Spokesman of the European Commission.

Prior to joining the European Commission in 1982 at its Delegation in Lisbon, Mr. Vale de Almeida spent seven years as a journalist.

Mr. Vale de Almeida holds a degree in history from the University of Lisbon and he has studied and received training in journalism and management in the United States, France, Japan and the United Kingdom.

Born in 1957 in Lisbon, he is married and has two children.