NEW PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF ICELAND PRESENTS CREDENTIALS TO DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF UNOG

Kristinn F. Arnason, the new Permanent Representative of Iceland to the United Nations Office at Geneva, today presented his credentials to Sergei Ordzhonikidze, the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva.

Prior to his appointment to Geneva, Mr. Arnason had been serving as Director of the Defence Department at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Iceland since 2003. From 1999 to 2003, he was Iceland's Ambassador to Norway and concurrently to the Czech Republic (1999 to 2003); Egypt (2000 to 2003); and Poland and Slovakia (1999 to 2002).

From 1994 to 1998, Mr. Arnason was Director of External Trade at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. From 1992 to 1994, he was the Chief Negotiator and Spokesman on fisheries issues at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. From 1987 to 1992, he was Deputy Permanent Representative of the Permanent Mission of Iceland to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

From 1985 to 1987, Mr. Arnason was First Secretary at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. From 1979 to 1985, he worked as a solicitor.

Mr. Arnason undertook postgraduate studies in Maritime Law at the University of Oslo, Norway in 1982. In 1981, he graduated with a Master of Laws in International Business Legal Studies from the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom. He has a law degree from the University of Iceland (1979).

Mr. Arnason was born on 5 January 1954 in Reykjavik, Iceland, and is married and has three children.

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