Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Kai Eide of Norway as his Special Representative for Afghanistan and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
11/03/2008 :: Kai Eide is currently the Political Director of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but will take up his new post shortly after consultation with the UN.
Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre congratulates Eide with the position and attaches great importance to the UN’s role as coordinator of the international efforts in Afghanistan. “I am proud that Kai Eide now will be appointed to the key post of UN Special Representative for Afghanistan. The Special Representative will have an extremely important role in improving and strengthening coordination of the international efforts in Afghanistan. Kai Eide is an excellent choice for the job, and I am pleased that he enjoys such broad international support. He has good contacts in the Afghan Government, which will facilitate closer cooperation between the UN and Afghanistan,” Støre said.
Mr. Eide replaces Tom Koenigs of Germany, who completed his assignment in December 2007.
Ambassador Eide has served the UN in various positions, primarily relating to the Balkan conflicts. Most recently he was the Special Envoy of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, with the aim of bringing the political process in Kosovo forward. He has also served as the Norwegian Permanent Representative to NATO and as Norwegian Ambassador to the OSCE.