International Commission on the Balkans

Biographies of Commission Members from the Report of the International Commission on the Balkans

Giuliano Amato: Former Prime Minister Italy Mr. Amato was Prime Minister from 1992 to 1993 and from 2000 to 2001. Thereafter he served as Vice President of the Convention. Mr. Amato was a Member of Parliament from 1983 to 1994; Under Secretary to the Prime Minister's Office from 1983 to 1987; Minister for the Treasury from 1987 to 1989 and from 1999 to 2000; Minister for Constitutional Reforms from 1998 to 1999; Deputy Prime Minister from 1987 to 1988. He also headed the Italian Antitrust Authority from 1994 to 1997. Full Professor of Comparative Constitutional Law at the University of Rome, School of Political Science, from 1975 to 1997, he had been Full Professor at the Universities of Modena, Perugia, Florence. Presently he is Global Law Professor at the NYU Law School and part time Professor at the EUI in Florence. Mr. Amato has written books and articles on the economy and public institutions, personal liberties, federalism and comparative government.

Carl Bildt: Former Prime Minister Sweden In Sweden, Mr. Bildt served as Member of Parliament from 1979 to 2001, Chairman of the Moderate Party from 1986 to 1999 and Prime Minister from 1991 to 1994. Mr. Bildt served as European Union Special Representative to the Former Yugoslavia as well as the first High Representative in Bosnia between 1995 and 1997, and then as Special Envoy of the Secretary-General of the United Nations to the Balkans between 1999 and 2001. In the United States, he is the only non-US member of the Board of Trustees of the RAND Corporation and on the Board of the Centre for European Reform as well as the Council of the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. Apart from numerous other awards, Mr. Bildt has an honorary degree from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, where he is a Fellow at its renowned Institute for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence.

Avis Bohlen Former Assistant Secretary of State United States Until May 2002, Ms. Bohlen was Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control. A career Foreign Service officer, she also served as US Ambassador to Bulgaria, Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Paris, and Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Canadian affairs for European security issues. She previously served as Director of the Office of European Security and Political Affairs, Executive Director of the US Delegation to the US-Soviet Nuclear and Space Arms Talks in Geneva, Deputy Political Counsellor at the US Embassy in Paris, and Chief of the Strategic Affairs and Arms Control Section in the Office of NATO Affairs. Currently member of the Board of Directors of the International Research and Exchange Board IREX in Washington, DC. In 2003 was a Public Policy Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Centre. Ms. Bohlen received the President's Distinguished Service Award in 1991.

Jean-Luc Dehaene Former Prime Minister Belgium Mr. Jean-Luc Dehaene gained his degrees in law and economics at the Universities of Namur and Leuven. From 1971, he held the position of advisor, then as Head of Cabinet for several different Ministers. He first held a ministerial post in 1981. From 1988 to 1992, he then became Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Traffic and Transport and Institutional Reform. Finally, as Prime Minister, he led two governments, from 1992 to 1995, and subsequently from 1995 to July 1999. He is seen as the architect of state reform. He led Belgium into the Euro economy and reorganised the government finances. Mr. Jean Luc Dehaene was vice chairman of the European Convention and is at present a Member of the European Parliament.

Kemal Dervis: Member of Parliament Turkey Mr. Dervis holds a Degree in Economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science and a PhD in Economics from Princeton University, USA. Following his studies, Mr. Dervis lectured at the Department of Economics of the Middle Eastern Technical University. In 1973-1976, he served then Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit as an advisor on issues relating to the economy and international relations. He then returned to Princeton University teaching economics and international relations. In 1978, he took office at the World Bank, where in 1991 he became Head of the Central Europe Department, including former Yugoslavia and Albania. In 1996, he became a Vice-President of the World Bank in charge of Middle East and Africa Region. In May 2000, he was appointed VicePresident responsible for Poverty Reduction and Economic Management. In March 2001 he left the World bank to become Minister for Economic Affairs of his country, called back to deal with the financial crisis that erupted in February 2001. After the crisis was overcome he resigned from the government in August 2002 and was subsequently elected to Parliament in November of 2002. He also represented the Turkish parliament in the Convention for the Future of Europe. Mr. Dervis has published numerous articles on economic policy and development economics. He is co-author of "General Equilibrium Models for Development Policy" and recently published a new book entitled "A Better Globalization".

Mircea Dan Geoana: Former Minister of Foreign Affairs Romania An alumnus of the Polytechnic Institute and, respectively, the Law School at the University of Bucharest, Mr. Mircea Geoana graduated in 1992 the "Ecole Nationale d'Administration" in Paris, France. He served as professor at the National School for Political and Administration Sciences and the "Nicolae Titulescu" University in Bucharest. He graduated the 1999 World Bank Group Executive Development Program at the Harvard Business School. In February 1996, was appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Romania to the United States of America. Prior to his appointment to Washington, he was Director General at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania. From 1993 to 1995 he also served as Spokesman for the Romanian Foreign Ministry. Mr. Mircea Geoana was Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania in 2000-2004. In this capacity, he served as OSCE Chairman-in-Office in 2001. In December 2004 he was elected Member of the Romanian Senate.

Kiro Gligorov: President of the Republic of Macedonia (1991-1999) Mr. Gligorov graduated from the Law Faculty in Belgrade in 1939. At the outbreak of the Second World War, he took part actively in the anti-fascist and people's liberation movement in Macedonia. From 1945 to the beginning of the 60s, he held specialised executive functions in the spheres of economy and finance in Belgrade. From 1963 to 1969 he was Minister of Finance of the SFR of Yugoslavia. One of the leading economists supporting the advancement of market economy in Yugoslavia, he was elected a member of the Presidency of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1974-1978) and President of the Parliament of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Thereafter he was forced to abstain from political activities. At the onset of the crises in Yugoslavia (1989-1990) he made a comeback in the political life of Macedonia, promoting multi-party elections and the introduction of a market economy. These activities resulted in his election as President of the Republic of Macedonia, in the first free, multi-party elections held in January 1991. While he was in office as President, the Republic of Macedonia proclaimed its independence and became the only Republic of the former SFR Yugoslavia to attain its independence though a peaceful and legitimate manner. On the first general presidential elections in the Republic of Macedonia held in October 1994, Mr. Kiro Gligorov was re-elected President of the Republic of Macedonia with a five year term, which he completed in 1999.

Istvan Gyarmati: Chairman, Centre for Euro Atlantic Integration and Democracy Hungary Mr. Gyarmati is currently Chairman of the Board of the Centre for Euro Atlantic Integration and Democracy in Budapest and Co-Chairman of the International Security Advisory Board for Southeast Europe of the Geneva-based Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces. He has been a Foreign Service officer since he graduated from the Budapest University of Economics, Faculty of Diplomacy, in 1974. His postings include member of the Hungarian delegation to the MBFR and IAEA (1981-86, Vienna), to the CSCE Follow-up Meeting (1987-89, Vienna), Head of Delegation to the CFE, CSBM, Opens Skies Negotiations (1990-92, Vienna), Head of Security Policy Department, MFA (Budapest, 1992-96); Personal Representative of the CSCE/OSCE Chairman-in-Office in Georgia (1992-93), Chechnya (1995) and the Negotiations on CSBMs in Bosnia and Herzegovina (1996), Chairman of the OSCE Senior Council (1995), Executive Secretary of the Budapest CSCE Summit (1994); Under-Secretary of Defence (1996-99), Chairman of the Missile Technology Control Regime (1998-99), Chief Adviser of the Foreign Minister on Security Policy and Chairman of the OPCW (1999-2000), Senior Vice President for Policy and Programs of the East West Institute. Mr. Gyarmati holds a Ph.D. in Political Science and is a candidate of Strategic Studies. He is member of the IISS, of numerous scientific projects, Associate Professor at the Zrinyi Miklos National Defence University. He is author of numerous publications on security policy, European security, conflict management and Hungarian defence policy.

Francois Heisbourg: Director Fondation pour la Recherche Stratégique France Mr. Heisbourg began his career as a member of the French foreign ministry's policy planning staff followed by a position at the French Permanent Mission to the U.N. (New-York). From 1981-84 he was the International security adviser to the French Minister of Defence as well as a founder member of the French-German Commission on Security and Defence. He took over the Directorship of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) in London. In the years 1992-98, he was Senior VicePresident (Strategic development) at MATRA-DefenseEspace and subsequently was made Director of the Fondation pour la Recherche Strategique in Paris. He is adviser to the French Foreign Ministry Planning Staff; Board member of the Aspen Institute in Berlin and Member of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufacture and Commerce; Chairman, Geneva Centre for Security Policy. Mr. Heisbourg has published numerous articles and interviews in the academic and general media in both English and French among which 'Hyperterrorisme: la nouvelle guerre', 2001, and 'La Fin de l'Occident? L'Amérique, l'Europe et le Moyen Orient', 2005.

Bruce P. Jackson: President Project on Transitional Democracies United States Mr. Bruce Jackson is the founder and President of the Project on Transitional Democracies, a multi-year endeavour aimed at the integration of post-1989 democracies into the institutions of the Euro-Atlantic. From 1986 to 1990, he served in the Office of the Secretary of Defence in a variety of policy positions pertaining to nuclear forces and arms control. In 1990, Mr. Jackson joined Lehman Brothers, an investment bank in New York. Between 1993 and 2002, Mr. Jackson was Vice President for Strategy and Planning at Lockheed Martin Corporation. From 1995 until 2003, he was the President of the US Committee on NATO, a non-profit corporation formed in 1996 to promote the expansion of NATO and the strengthening of ties between the United States and Europe. During the 2002-2003, he served as the Chairman of the Committee for the Liberation of Iraq. He continues to serve on the Board of Directors of the Project for the New American Century, a non-profit corporation involved in educating American opinion on foreign policy and national security.

Zlatko Lagumdzija: President, Social Democratic Party Former Prime Minister Bosnia and Herzegovina Mr. Lagumdzija holds a Ph.D. in computer Science and Electrical Engineering at University of Sarajevo. He is a professor of Management Information System at the School of Economics and at the Computer Science and Electrical Engineering School, University of Sarajevo since 1989. President of the Social Democratic Party of B&H (SDP) since 1997. Member of Parliament of B&H, House of Representatives since 1996. Chairman of the Council of Ministers of B&H (Prime Minister) 2001 - 2002. Minister of Foreign Affairs of B&H in 2001 - 2003. Acting Prime Minister 1993. Deputy Prime Minister of B&H 1992 - 1993. Member of "Global Leaders for Tomorrow" of the World Economic Forum, since 1998. Awarded with numerous international and national awards for his professional and expert results. Postdoctoral research at MIS Department and CCIT at University of Arizona, Tucson 1988/89. Consultant to various business and governmental organizations. Author over hundred research and expert papers and four books in MIS area. Author of numerous articles on Bosnian political and economic issues and series of independent TV forums on Bosnian future.

ILIR META Former Prime Minister Albania Mr. Ilir Meta is Chairman of the Socialist Movement for Integration, which began in September 2004 as a reform movement within the Socialist Party. He has graduated from the Faculty of Economy, Tirana University. He was involved in political life at the beginning of the 1990s as a member of the leadership of the Student Movement. A member of the Socialist Party Leading Council since 1992, Mr. Meta was SP vice chairman during 1993-1996. In the period 1996-1997, Meta was deputy chairman of the Foreign Policy Parliamentary Commission. Mr. Meta was appointed Prime Minister of Albania in 1999, and was reconfirmed in this post after the June 2001 elections. Mr. Meta resigned in January 2002 to give way to a solution of a government crisis. In August 2002 he was appointed Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, from which he resigned in June 2003, as result of the failure of the government to pursue the reforms toward EU integration.

NEVEN MIMICA Former Minister for European Integration Croatia Mr. Mimica received in 1976 a degree in Economics from the University of Zagreb and in 1987 a Master's degree from the Faculty of Economics. Between 1979-83 he was a Research Associate and Adviser at the Republic Committee for International Relations, in 1983-87 he became Assistant to the President of the Republic Committee for the International Relations in Charge of Foreign Exchange System and Foreign Trade System. Between 1987 and 1997 he served at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Croatia. In 1997 Mr. Mimica was appointed Assistant Minister for International Economic Relations at the Croatian Ministry of Economy. In 2000, he was appointed Chief Negotiator for Stabilization and Association Agreement and Deputy Minister of Economy of the Republic of Croatia. In 20012003 he occupied the position of Minister for European Integration. Since November 2003 he is member of the Croatian Parliament.

DAME PAULINE NEVILLE-JONES Former Governor of BBC United Kingdom Ms. Dame Pauline Neville-Jones is Chairman of QinetiQ Group plc, a defence technology company with government customers in the UK and USA and Chairman of the Information Assurance Advisory Council (IAAC). She is a member of the UK governing Board of the International Chambers of Commerce (ICC) and of the governing Council of Oxford University. From 1998-2004 she was the International Governor of the BBC with responsibility, among other things, for external broadcasting, notably the BBC World Service (radio and online) and BBC World (television). Prior to that, she was a career member of the British Diplomatic Service serving, among other places, in Singapore, Washington DC, the European Commission in Brussels and Bonn. She was a foreign affairs adviser to Prime Minister John Major (1991-1994), chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee in Whitehall (1993-1994). As Political Director in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (1994-96), she was leader of the British delegation to the Dayton peace conference on Bosnia. She is a graduate of Oxford University and was a Harkness Fellow of the Commonwealth Fund in the United States (1961-1963). She was made a Dame Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (DCMG) in 1995. She is a Doctor of the Open and London Universities.

JANEZ POTOCNIK Member of the European Commission Slovenia Mr. Janez Potocnik graduated with honours from the Faculty of Economics at the University of Ljubljana, where he did his Ph.D. degree in 1993.