EEAS: High Representative Kaja Kallas announces new EU Ambassador nominations and senior management appointments

Kaja Kallas, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission, announces the nomination of 33 EU Ambassadors and 7 Deputy Heads of Delegation of the European Union. The 145 EU Delegations are the face of the EU around the world and the frontline in the protection of the EU’s interests abroad. They inform, implement and project the EU’s priorities and its foreign and security policy.

The appointments of the EU Ambassadors will be formalised following receipt of the official approval (agrément) from the respective host countries, where applicable, and the completion of other administrative procedures within the framework of Rotation 2026.

 The High Representative also announces the appointment of two senior managers to positions at EEAS headquarters.

PORTER Dominic has been appointed Deputy Managing Director for Asia and the Pacific. He previously served as Head of Division for China in the EEAS and has also held, among other roles, the position of Head of Division for Global and Economic Issues.

DI MAURO Francesca has been appointed as the Deputy Managing Director for Africa. She is currently serving as the EU Ambassador to Somalia and has previously, among other positions, held the post of EU Ambassador to the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire.

Afghanistan - BELLOMO Nicola has been nominated as Chargé d’Affaires a.i. He is currently serving as Head of Division for Pan-African Affairs in the EEAS and has previously held, among other posts, the position of EU Ambassador to the Republic of Rwanda.

Albania -  MOREIRA DE SOUSA Sofia has been nominated as EU Ambassador. She is currently serving as Head of the European Commission Representation in Portugal and has previously held, among other posts, the position of EU Ambassador to Cabo Verde.

ASEAN - RAFTI Marina has been nominated as EU Ambassador. She is currently serving as Deputy Head of the Counterterrorism Division in the EEAS and has previously held, among other positions, the post of Head of the Political, Press and Information Section at the EU Delegation to Jordan.

Australia - MEREDITH Lawrence has been nominated as EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as EU Ambassador to New Zealand and has previously held, among other posts, the position of Director for Neighbourhood East and Institution Building in the European Commission.

Botswana and Southern African Development Community (SADC) - CALVO UYARRA Belén has been nominated as EU Ambassador. She is currently serving as EU Ambassador to Rwanda and has previously held, among other positions, the post of Senior Advisor for Africa and Development Cooperation to the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation.

Brazil - ANDRÉ Francisco has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as the EU Ambassador to Mexico and has previously, among other positions, held the position of Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of the Portuguese Republic.

Burundi - VILLA Alessandro has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as Adviser to the Director for Africa at the European Commission. He has previously served as the Commission’s representative to the Italian Prime Minister’s Task Force on the Mattei Plan.

Cameroon - BOŠKOVIĆ POHAR Veronika has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. She is currently serving as Chargé d’Affaires a.i. to Afghanistan and has previously, among other postings, served as Permanent Representative of Slovenia to the Political and Security Committee.

China - VELDKAMP Caspar has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He most recently served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands. He has previously held, among other positions, the roles of Dutch Ambassador to the Hellenic Republic and to the State of Israel.

Council of Europe - STUTZMANN Alexandre has been nominated as EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as EU Ambassador to the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and UNRWA. He has previously, among other positions, served as Minister Counsellor for Parliamentary Relations with the United Nations at the EU Delegation to the UN.

Democratic Republic of the Congo - CARPENTER Douglas has been appointed as the EU Ambassador. He previously served as the Head of Division for EU Civilian Operations Headquarters in the EEAS and has formerly, among other posts, held the post of EU Ambassador to the Central African Republic.

India - PAQUET Jean-Eric has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as EU Ambassador to Japan. Previously, he held, among other positions, the role of Director-General for Research and Innovation at the European Commission.

Indonesia - DELPHIN Hervé has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as the EU Ambassador to India and Bhutan. He has formerly, among other positions, held the position of Head of Policy Planning and Strategic Foresight at the EEAS.

Japan - ALIBERTI Pier Giorgio Federico has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as the Director for the National Authority for Export Control of Armament and Dual-Use Materials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy.

Kenya - PESCHKE Andreas has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently the Ambassador of Germany to South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini. He has formerly, among other posts, held the position of Director General for EU and EU Member States at the Foreign Office of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Libya - KONSTANTOPOULOS Alexis has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as Special Representative for Economic Corridor India-Middle East-Europe (IMEC) and Director for International and Regional Energy, Transport and Supply Chains Network at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic. He has formerly, among other posts, held the position of Ambassador of the Hellenic Republic to Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Oman.

Mexico – MARTÍNEZ CARBONELL Belén has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. She is currently serving as the EEAS Secretary-General. Throughout her career, she has held several senior leadership positions within the EEAS, including leading major directorates such as the Directorate for the Global Agenda and Multilateral Relations and serving as Director for Human Resources.

Mozambique - FONTAN PARDO Francisco has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as the Principal Adviser to the Chief Governance Officer in the EEAS. He has formerly, among other posts, held the position of Head of Cabinet for the former High Representative and EU Ambassador to ASEAN.

Nepal - WHITELEY Charles has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as the Head of Division for South Asia in the EEAS. He has previously, among other roles, held the position of EU Ambassador to the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.  

New Zealand – SAMCOVÁ Lucie has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. She is currently serving as the Chief of Protocol of the EEAS and has previously, among other posts, held the position of EU Ambassador to Iceland.

Nicaragua - GEURTS Charles-Michel has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as Head of Division for Career, Learning and Development, EU Diplomatic Academy in the EEAS. He has previously, among other posts, held the position of EU Ambassador to Ecuador.

Norway - VAN KEMSEKE Peter has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as Senior Adviser in the Cabinet of the President of the European Commission. He has previously, among other posts, held the position of Director for Strategy and Communication at the Belgian Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs.

Panama - FONTANA Andrea Matteo has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as the Head of Division for Strategic Communication Regional Teams and Coordination of Task Forces in the EEAS. He has formerly, among other positions, held the position of EU Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates.

Qatar - MAGGIORE Antonino has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as the EU Ambassador to Mozambique. Previously, he served as Ambassador of Italy to Zambia, Malawi, and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), among other posts.

Russia - MÅRD Malena has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. She is currently serving as Ambassador of Sweden to Türkiye. She has previously, among other posts, held the position of Ambassador of Sweden to Russia and EU Ambassador to Azerbaijan.

Rwanda - BLIN Jérémie has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as the Secretary-General of the Africa-France Summit at the Ministry for European and Foreign Affairs of France. He has previously, among other posts, held the position of Ambassador of France to Burundi.

Senegal - MAIO-COLICHE Aude has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. She is currently serving as the Acting Director for Africa and Ambassador for Equality at the EEAS. She has previously, among other posts, held the position of Director for Strategic Communications and Foresight at the EEAS and as EU Ambassador to Argentina.

South Africa - SCHMIDT Kristian has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as Director for Land in DG MOVE at the European Commission. He has previously, among other posts, held the position of EU Ambassador to Myanmar.

Sri Lanka - HARTLEIF Sylvia has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. She is currently serving as Adviser on General Affairs Council matters at the Foreign Office of the Federal Republic of Germany. She has previously, among other roles, held the role of EU Ambassador to the Republic of Benin.

Tanzania - PISANI Jean-Marc has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as EU Ambassador to Senegal. He has previously, among other posts, held the post of Head of Division of the Horn of Africa/Eastern Africa in the EEAS.  

Turkmenistan - DEVIGNE Luc has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as Principal Adviser for Critical Raw Materials to the Managing Director for Global Issues and Communication in the EEAS. He has previously, among other posts, held the post of Director for Europe and Central Asia.

United Kingdom - SALOVAARA Jukka has been nominated as the EU Ambassador. He is currently serving as Permanent State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland. He has previously, among other posts held the post of Permanent Representative of Finland to the United Nations.

West Bank, Gaza Strip and UNRWA - FIEDLER Andreas has been nominated as the EU Representative. He is currently serving as Deputy Head of Mission at the German Embassy in Egypt. He has previously, among other posts, held the position of Head of Division for the Maghreb and the Union for the Mediterranean at the Foreign Office of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Barbados - HARRIS HESS Tessa has been nominated as Deputy Head of Delegation. She is currently serving as Political Assistant to the Managing Director for Asia and the Pacific at the European External Action Service (EEAS). She has previously, among other posts, held the position of Head of Sector for the Security Experts Network at the EEAS.

Côte d’Ivoire - DEMOL Carole has been nominated as Deputy Head of Delegation. She is currently serving as Director of the Bilateral Aid Department at the Belgian Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs. She has previously, among other posts, held the position of Head of Division for European Partnerships at the Belgian Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs.

Kosovo - HUPIN Alexis has been nominated as the Deputy Head of Office. He is currently serving as policy officer for Kosovo in the EEAS. He has formerly, among other posts, served as Head of Integration, Political, Press and Information Section in the EU Delegation to Albania.

Senegal - HUYGHEBAERT Thomas has been nominated as the Deputy Head of Delegation. He is currently serving as Head of Sector for Central Africa – Congo Basin at the European Commission. He has formerly, among other posts, held the position of Head of Policy and Cooperation at EU Delegation to the African Union.

Serbia - VASSALLO Julian has been nominated as the Deputy Head of Delegation. He is currently serving as a Team Leader in the division for United Kingdom in the EEAS. He has formerly, among other posts, served as Head of Political, European Integration, Press and Info Section in the EU Delegation to North Macedonia.

Thailand - SANDOVAL Patrick has been nominated as Deputy Head of Delegation. He is currently serving as Head of the Political, Press and Information Section at the EU Delegation to Myanmar. Previously, he held several positions, including Deputy Head of Unit for China, Japan and the Indian Subcontinent, as well as Acting Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

UN/IAEA/OSCE - KNAB-LUNNY Fiona has been nominated as the Deputy Head of Delegation. She is currently serving as a Head of Cabinet to the Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, the Rule of Law and Consumer Protection in the European Commission. She has formerly, among other posts, served as Cabinet expert in the Cabinet of the former High Representative of the EU.