United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced on Wednesday the appointment of Elizabeth Spehar of Canada as his new Special Representative and head of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP).
Spehar will also perform the function of Deputy to the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Cyprus.
She will succeed Lisa Buttenheim, who will take up the position of Assistant Secretary-General for Field Support at Headquarters.
“The Secretary-General is grateful for Ms. Buttenheim’s dedication and exemplary leadership of UNFICYP over the past six years. Ms. Buttenheim also provided invaluable support to the Secretary-General’s mission of good offices, as the Deputy to his Special Adviser on Cyprus. During her tenure, significant progress has been achieved in the negotiations towards a comprehensive settlement” Stéphane Dujarric, the Spokesperson for the United Nations Secretary-General told the press on Wednesday.
He said Spehar “has had extensive political experience in several senior positions with the United Nations Department of Political Affairs since 2007”.
Spehar is expected to take up her new appointment before summer.
Replying to a question Dujarric noted that “the efforts of the SG through his Special Adviser Espen Barth Eide, the talks between the two sides, continue well” and added that “this is where we focus”.