Einar Gunnarsson of Iceland Chair of Third Committee

The Third Committee (Social Humanitarian and Cultural) elected Einar Gunnarsson (Iceland) as Chair on 31 May 2017.  (See Press Release GA/11915.)

Before his appointment as Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Mr. Gunnarsson was the Permanent Secretary of State at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs from 2009 to 2014.  He was Director and Chief Negotiator in the Department of International Trade Negotiations from 2008 to 2009 and Director of Human Resources for the Foreign Service from 2007 to 2008.

Mr. Gunnarsson served as Deputy Permanent Representative and Minister-Counsellor at his country’s Permanent Mission to the International Organizations in Geneva from 2004 and 2006, and as Counsellor at Iceland’s Embassy and Mission to the European Community in Brussels from 2000 to 2004.

At the Foreign Ministry from 1998 to 2000, he served in the Trade Department as First Secretary and Counsellor, and from 1996 to 1998, he was Legal Adviser and Deputy Director of the Defence Department.

Mr. Gunnarsson holds a law degree from the University of Iceland.

He is married and has two daughters.

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*     This supersedes Press Release BIO/4685 of 20 January 2015.