Pascale Baeriswyl appointed FDFA state secretary

Bern, 30.09.2016 - The Federal Council appointed Ms Pascale Baeriswyl state secretary and head of the Directorate of Political Affairs of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs on Friday. Ms Baeriswyl (48, places of origin Basel and Fribourg) is currently the assistant director of the FDFA's Directorate of International Law (DIL). She will take up her post on 1 December of this year and will succeed Mr Yves Rossier who, after more than four years in this function, has today been appointed ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Russian Federation. The Federal Council has also appointed Ms Krystyna Marty Lang, until recently head of mission in Pristina, as deputy state secretary and deputy head of the Directorate of Political Affairs, with the title of ambassador.

Ms Baeriswyl has been appointed following an open competition process for this post. She placed at the top of each stage of this competition. The new state secretary, who in addition to English also has a perfect command of German, French and Italian, was appointed at the end of this process because she has the skills necessary to strengthen the implementation of the Foreign Policy Strategy 2016-2019. She has a great deal of experience in the priority areas of this strategy. 

Ms Baeriswyl joined the FDFA in 2000, having studied law, history, French literature and linguistics, and worked as a researcher at the Swiss National Science Foundation and as a judge.  She completed a diplomatic internship at the DIL and the Swiss embassy in Hanoi, and was subsequently deputy head of the then Human Rights Section, responsible for the Asia-Pacific region, within the FDFA's Human Security Division. From 2005 to 2008, she was in charge of security and foreign policy at the Mission of Switzerland to the European Union in Brussels. From 2008 to 2013, she headed the political section of the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations in New York.

Currently, she heads the division in charge of international law, the Asset Recovery Task Force and the International Treaties Section. She is also assistant director of the Directorate of International Law, with the title of ambassador.

The Federal Council has extended its thanks to Mr Yves Rossier for the hard work he has carried out with intelligence and energy as state secretary since 2012 and is delighted to be able to count on his services in Moscow. Ms Krystyna Marty Lang, until recently head of mission in Pristina in Kosovo, has  been appointed deputy state secretary and deputy head of the Directorate of Political Affairs, with the title of ambassador, in the State Secretariat of the FDFA in Bern, where she will succeed Mr Alexandre Fasel who has been appointed to head the Swiss embassy in London.

The Federal Council has also appointed other ambassadors, who will change posts in 2016 and 2017 in accordance with the regular rotation of diplomatic posts. They will officially take up their functions upon accreditation by their host countries. A second list of transfers will be submitted to the Federal Council for approval during the autumn.

List of new heads of mission:

Marion Weichelt Krupski, currently deputy head of mission in Berlin, will become the new ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Republic of Senegal, Cape Verde, the Islamic Republic of the Gambia, the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, the Republic of Mali and the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, based in Dakar.

Martin Strub, currently head of mission in Khartoum, will become the new ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, the Republic of Paraguay and permanent observer to the Latin American Integration Association, based in Montevideo.

Christian Fotsch, currently head of mission in Dhaka, will become the new ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

Thomas Kolly, currently head of mission in Madrid, will become the new ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, based in Islamabad.

Giulio Haas, currently head of mission in Tehran, will become the new ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Kingdom of Spain and the Principality of Andorra, based in Madrid.

Dominik Furgler, currently head of mission in London, will become the new ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Czech Republic.

André Regli, currently head of mission in Brasilia, will become the new ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Republic of Portugal, succeeding Ambassador Lorenzo Schnyder von Wartensee, who will retire.

Andrea Semadeni, currently head of mission in Addis Ababa, will become the new ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Federative Republic of Brazil.

Hans-Ruedi Bortis, currently head of mission in Lima, will become the new ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Republic of Guatemala and the Republic of Honduras, based in Guatemala City.

Walter Haffner, currently head of mission in Ankara, will become the new ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Republic of Austria, succeeding Ambassador Christoph Bubb, who will retire.

Josef Philipp Renggli, deputy head of the Swiss Mission to the European Union in Brussels, has been appointed deputy director of the FDFA's Directorate for European Affairs (DEA) in Bern. To allow him to carry out his new function, the Federal Council has conferred on him the title of ambassador. 


Address for enquiries

FDFA Information
Tel. +41 58 462 31 53
info@eda.admin.ch


Publisher

The Federal Council
https://www.admin.ch/gov/en/start.html

Federal Department of Foreign Affairs
https://www.eda.admin.ch/eda/en/home.html

https://www.admin.ch/content/gov/en/start/documentation/media-releases.msg-id-63975.html