Ambassador Bernard Fassier assumes the position of Senior Deputy High Representative and Head of Rule of Law unit

The High Representative, Paddy Ashdown, has appointed Ambassador Bernard Fassier as Senior Deputy High Representative and Head of Rule of Law unit. Mr. Fassier was born in France in 1944. He is married and father of five.

Mr. Bernard Fassier is a graduate of the Saint-Cyr Military Academy and Senior War College. He remained in the military service until 1986. During his military career he held the post of Deputy Military Attaché in Moscow and thereafter as the Head of Operations and Training Department of the French Military Government in West Berlin.

Ambassador Bernard Fassier has a degree from the National Institute for Eastern Languages in Russian language and from the Institute for Political Science in Paris in International Relations.

At the end of his military career Ambassador Fassier was seconded into the service of the Quai d’Orsay and in 1987 was appointed a diplomat. Ambassador Fassier’s appointments include the position of Vice Director for USSR (1987-1990). He also worked for the French Embassies in Switzerland (1990-1993) and Georgia (1993-1997). His most recent appointment was as the French Ambassador to Belarus (1997-2002).

Following the streamlining of the IC Ambassador Fassier will be heading the Rule of Law pillar where he will be responsible for co-coordinating the restructuring of the BiH judicial system and coordination of various agencies tasked with the judicial reform, such as Independent Judicial Commission, High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council including legislative reform of Criminal Code and Criminal procedure Code.