Council Bureau

At the beginning of each regular session, the Council elects, from among the representatives, a Chairperson and the following officers: a First Vice-Chairperson, a Second Vice-Chairperson and a Rapporteur. The officers are elected for a one-year term and hold office until their successors are elected. They are eligible for re-election.

Chairperson: Her Excellency Katharina Stasch, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Germany to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva.

Ambassador Stasch brings to the position over fifteen years of experience in international and national politics. Prior to becoming Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva, she has served as Chief of Staff and Head of the Minister’s Office of Foreign Minister Heiko Maas Office in the Federal Foreign Ministry as well as the Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection. Important projects of this time include the shaping of the Alliance of Multilateralism, Germany‘s Membership in the UN Security Council, the Law on Equal Rights of Women (quotas) and combating hate speech.

Ms Stasch holds a Ph.D. (Thesis- Lender of Last Resort: Banking Crises and Crisis Resolution in the EU), University of Hamburg, and a Master of Laws (LL.M.), School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.

First Vice-Chairperson: His Excellency Ambassador Mr Seong deok Yun Permanent Representative of Korea to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva.

Ambassador Yun has served as the Republic of Korea's Ambassador and Permanent Representative in Geneva since December 2022. Ambassador Yun has over 30 years of experience in the diplomatic service and foreign affairs. Prior to his posting to Geneva, Ambassador Yun was serving as Deputy Minister for Economic Affairs within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea since February 2022 and served as Foreign Policy Advisor to the Prime Minister from June 2021 to February 2022. Prior to this, he served as the Republic of Korea’s Ambassador to Morocco from July 2018 to June 2021 and as Director-General for Bilateral Economic Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from February 2017 to July 2018.

Second Vice-President to be elected

Rapporteur: His Excellency Mr. Sabri Bachtobji, Permanent Representative of Tunisia to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva.

Ambassador Bachtobji served as Tunisia’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs during 2016-.2020. He served as Tunisia’s Ambassador to Brazil from April 2013 to July 2016. He was the Deputy Director of the Directorate General for Europe, in charge of relations with Turkey, the western Balkan countries and Switzerland from July 2011 to March 2013, and Tunisia’s Consul General in Lyon from March 2010 to June 2011.