Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on March 2 announced the appointment of Jan Eliasson as the new Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations.

The former Ambassador, former Foreign Minister and president of the 60th UN General Assembly will take over from Asha-Rose Migiro of Tanzania on July 1.

"For Deputy Secretary-General, I am going to appoint Mr. Jan Eliasson, a national of Sweden, who is a veteran in the field of diplomacy and international relations and a strong supporter of the United Nations," Mr. Ban told the press.

Much of the reform work Eliasson commenced during his tenure as president of the General Assembly will likely be continued in his new position. The General Assembly created the Deputy post as late as 1997 and the responsibilities makes it equivalent to a COO position in the private sector. Other than general assistance of the top man the job description entails administrative responsibilities, to help manage Secretariat operations, and ensure coherence of activities and programs.

We feel that few people could be more appropriate for the position than the veteran Swedish diplomat. Eliasson's background and personality fit in with Roosevelt's vision of the UN's top leadership as "world moderators" and the appointment should make every Swede proud. /Ed.

Further from Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's meeting with the press on March 2:
"Mr. Eliasson has held many important roles directly related to the United Nations, such as President of the 60th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, my Special Envoy for Darfur, and currently a member of the MDG [Millennium Development Goals] Advocate Group. He also served as the first Under-Secretary-General and head of the Department of Humanitarian Affairs in 1992.
During his tenure as President of the General Assembly, he led important reform initiatives which resulted in the creation of the Human Rights Council and the Peacebuilding Commission. 
During his tenure as Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Special Envoy for Darfur, he was involved in emergency humanitarian operations and conflict prevention in a number of hot spots like Sudan, Somalia, Mozambique and the Balkans. 
 On the national stage, he has served in key ambassadorial positions representing his country in New York and Washington, as well as State Secretary for Foreign Affairs and finally as Foreign Minister of Sweden.
 "