Amb. Ilter Türkmen

Diplomat

Turkey

Ambassador Ilter Türkmen was a former Turkish diplomat and former foreign minister of Turkey. During his diplomatic tenure, he served as the Turkish ambassador to Greece and Russia, and as Turkey’s permanent representative to the United Nations. He was the commissioner general of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency and the UN secretary-general’s special representative in Thailand. After retiring from duty in 1991, Türkmen served as a consultant to a number of foundations, institutions and news sources.

Türkmen passed away on July 6, 2022.

Min. Hans van den Broek

Diplomat

Netherlands

Minister Hans van den Broek is president of the Netherlands Institute of International Relations and of Radio Netherlands. He was a member of the advisory board to the International Commission on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament until the end of its mandate in 2010. After entering Dutch Parliament in 1976, he served as state secretary for European affairs, minister of foreign affairs and European commissioner of foreign relations until 1999, when he retired from European politics. He is active in supporting political leadership and good governance as a member of the Global Leadership Foundation and a member of the board of advisors to the Global Panel Foundation. In 2005, he received the honorary title of Minister of State, a prestigious, lifetime honor bestowed upon Dutch leaders who have made significant contributions to the country.

Hon. Eckart von Klaeden

Diplomat

Germany

The Honorable Eckart von Klaeden is vice president for external affairs at Daimler AG. He served as a member of the German Bundestag from 1994 to 2013, most recently holding the position of minister of state to the Federal Chancellor. After studying law at the Universities of Würzburg and Göttingen, he joined the military acquiring the rank of reserve lieutenant commander before running for Parliament. He was the parliamentary secretary of the CDU/CSU Parliamentary Group on the Committee of Inquiry on Visa Affairs until 2005. He was also a member of the board of trustees for the Middle East Peace Forum. Since 2016, von Klaeden has served as the chairman of the board of trustees for Aspen Germany.

Min. Margot Wallström

Diplomat

Sweden

Minister Margot Wallström currently serves as Sweden’s minister of foreign affairs. Prior to this role, she served as UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s special representative on sexual violence in conflict, as well as environment commissioner and vice president of the European Commission, a post she held from 2004 to 2010. Having long been involved in politics, she was first elected as a member of the Swedish Parliament in 1979. Following her service in parliament, she held several ministerial positions, including minister of civil affairs, minister of culture, and minister of social affairs. Throughout her career, she has been actively involved in advocating for the participation of women in peace and security-related issues. She was the co-founder of the European Union intern-institutional group of women and a supporter of the 50-50 Campaign for Democracy, both efforts to promote a more gender-balanced European Union. Wallström has received numerous awards, including the Monismanien Award for Freedom of Speech and the Goteborg Award on Sustainable Development.

Amb. Wu Jianmin

Diplomat

China

Ambassador Wu Jianmin’s career in international diplomacy spanned nearly half a century. He was part of the Chinese mission to the United Nations in New York from 1971 to 1977, and served as counselor for China at the UN from 1985 to 1988. He was spokesman of the Chinese Foreign Ministry before serving as ambassador to the Netherlands from 1994 to 1996, permanent representative to the UN Office in Geneva from 1996 to 1998, and ambassador to France from 1998 to 2003.

Later in his career, he became president of China Foreign Affairs University and deputy director of the Foreign Affairs Committee of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. He served as chairman of Shanghai Center for International Studies, vice-chairman of China Institute of Strategy and Management, and a member of the Foreign Policy Advisory Committee of the Foreign Ministry.

Ambassador Wu passed away in June 2016.

Wu was a member of the Global Zero Commission.

Amb. Zhou Gang

Diplomat

China

The former Chinese ambassador to India and Pakistan, Zhou Gang now serves as councilor at the China Reform Forum and senior research fellow at the China Foundation of International Studies. He has also served an ambassadorial posting in Malaysia and served as a special consultant to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.