United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres announced today the appointment of María Angela Holguín Cuéllar of Colombia as his Personal Envoy on Cyprus.  The Secretary-General has asked Ms. Holguín to assume a good offices role on his behalf to search for common ground on the way forward and to advise him on the Cyprus issue.  
 
Ms. Holguín brings extensive diplomatic experience at the highest levels, including as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Colombia (2010-2018).  She also served as delegate of the President of Colombia in the Peace Process Negotiation in Havana, Cuba (2015-2016) and was a member of the Cabinet for Post-Conflict (2017-2018).  Previous posts in her diplomatic career include the position of Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations, Ambassador to Venezuela and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.  
 
Ms. Holguín holds a degree in Political Science from the Universidad de Los Andes in Bogotá.  She also studied at the Centre d´Études Diplomatiques et Stratégiques and at the Université Paris–Sorbonne in Paris.  In addition to Spanish, she speaks English and French. 
 
 
New York, 5 January 2024