UN Special Envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, announced his resignation on Thursday after nearly seven years in the role.
During a Security Council meeting focused on Syria, Pedersen informed the council, “I would like to notify you that I have informed the Secretary-General of my intention to step down after more than six and a half years as the UN special envoy for Syria, and he has accepted my request.” He mentioned that his decision was made for “personal reasons.”
Geir Pedersen, a Norwegian diplomat born in 1955 in Oslo, holds an advanced degree in philosophy. He has held various positions within the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and began his career with the United Nations in 2003.
He previously served as the UN Secretary-General’s special envoy to Southern Lebanon and then as the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon, before being appointed as the special envoy for Syria in 2018.
Born on September 28, 1955, in Oslo, Geir Pedersen holds a graduate degree in philosophy.
His diplomatic career began in 1985, and he was part of the Norwegian team involved in the Oslo negotiations between the Palestine Liberation Organization and Israel in 1993.
On October 31, 2018, UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced Pedersen’s appointment as his special envoy to Syria, succeeding Steffan de Mistura.