Hans Wesseling

Hans Wesseling is a retired diplomat with expertise in civilian-military cooperation, conflict management, post-conflict peace building and reconstruction.

Following his graduation and successful military service, where he also learned the Russian language, Wesseling joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1982 and worked there for four decades until his retirement in 2022.

The majority of his postings were in or related to Eastern Europe; including Moscow, Zagreb, St. Petersburg, Tbilisi and Kyiv, where he was also involved in Human Rights programmes and cooperation with civil society. From 2018 – 2022, he served as the Netherlands’ Permanent Representative to UNESCO. Previously, as Deputy-Director of the Peace Building and Stabilization Department (2008-2012), he was a bridge builder between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense. He was co-organizer of the civil-military comprehensive approach exercise “Common Effort”, together with the German-Dutch Army Corps, in 2011.

Currently, Hans Wesseling does voluntary work with the NGO Protect Ukraine.