Biographical Note

SECRETARY-GENERAL APPOINTS PETER TAKSØE-JENSEN OF DENMARK

AS ASSISTANT SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR LEGAL AFFAIRS

 

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today announced the appointment of Peter Taksøe-Jensen of Denmark as the new Assistant Secretary-General for Legal Affairs.  Mr. Taksøe-Jensen will replace Larry Johnson.

The Secretary-General is grateful for Mr. Johnson’s distinguished service to the United Nations through his long tenure in various capacities related to the rule of law and international justice.

Mr. Taksøe-Jensen is well known in international legal circles, where he has been the driving force behind a number of Danish policies and initiatives to strengthen and develop international law.  His experience and background will be of direct relevance in supporting the Legal Counsel in the overall direction and management of the Office of Legal Affairs and in furthering the main goals of the Office.

As Under-Secretary for Legal Affairs and Head of the Legal Service in the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Taksøe-Jensen has since 2004 been the principal legal adviser to the Danish Foreign Minister on all matters concerning international law.  He has also served as the agent for the Government of Denmark at the European Court of Human Rights, as a member of the Court of Conciliation and Arbitration within the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and as Chairman of the Commission on the Red Cross of the Government of Denmark.

Mr. Taksøe-Jensen joined the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1987.  He has served in the Legal Service of the Ministry since 1999, including as Head of the Department of International Law.  He also served in the Security Policy Department and in the European Union Law Department, and on various Government commissions.  He has been posted to Vienna, at the Danish Embassy and with the Danish Delegation to the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe/Confidence- and Security-Building Measures (CFE/CSBM); and to Brussels as a member of his country’s representation to the European Union.

Mr. Taksøe-Jensen holds a degree in law from the University of Copenhagen, where he has also lectured since 2003.

Born in 1959 in Copenhagen, Mr. Taksøe-Jensen has two children.

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