Francisco Javier Solana de Madariaga was born on July 14, 1942, in Madrid, Spain.
He is president of ESADE Center for Global Economy and Geopolitics (Barcelona-Madrid). He is also distinguished fellow in Foreign Policy at Brookings Institution, Fisher Family Fellow at Harvard, chairman of the Aspen Institute España, honorary president of the Centre for Human Dialogue (Geneva), member of the board of the International Crisis Group, the European Council on Foreign Relations, and Human Rights Watch, as well as senior visiting professor at the London School of Economics, where he was awarded an Honorary Degree in December 2010.
From 1999 to 2009, Dr. Solana was Secretary General of the Council of the European Union (EU); and from 1995 to 1999, Secretary General of NATO. Dr. Solana is the former High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) of the European Union. Prior to this, he has held several ministerial positions in the Spanish government, including Minister for Foreign Affairs.
