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

Javier Garrigues Florez, the new Permanent Representative of Spain 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. Garrigues Florez had been serving as Spain’s Ambassador in Sweden from 2002 to 2006. Concurrently, he was the Ambassador of Spain in Latvia, with residence in Stockholm, from 2002 to 2004. He served as Secretary-General for Foreign Affairs and Political Director at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Spain from 2000 to 2002, and Political Director and General Director for the United Nations at the Ministry from 1998 to 2000.

A career diplomat, Mr. Garrigues Florez’s foreign postings include serving as General Consul of Spain in Sydney, Australia, from 1993 to 1996; Counselor at the Permanent Mission of Spain to the United Nations Headquarters in New York from 1989 to 1993; First Secretary at the Embassy of Spain in India from 1984 to 1986; and First Secretary at the Embassy of Spain in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland from 1979 to 1984.

Mr. Garrigues Florez has degrees from the Spanish Diplomatic School in Madrid (1974 to 1976); from the Law School at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (1969 to 1973); and in Political Science (Paris 1968 to 1969). He was born in Paris on 10 December, 1949, and is married with two children.

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