German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has appointed Johannes Haindl as a new special envoy to be coordinating closely with the European Union and the United States in a bid to help settle the crisis in Macedonia, Germany’s Foreign Office said on Wednesday.
Haindl currently serves as the German Ambassador to Austria. Fourteen years ago, he was at the helm of the department for the Southeast Europe and Turkey at the German Foreign Office.
The appointment of the sitting German Ambassador to Vienna as special envoy for Macedonia reflects the commitment of the federal government in Berlin to the progress of Western Balkan countries, a ministry spokesman said.
“The political situation in Macedonia is a cause for concern at the German Federal Government. Therefore, Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has decided to appoint a personal envoy considering the situation in Macedonia asking Ambassador Johannes Haindl to take up the post. Ambassador Haindl as of now on will work together with the European Commission, the United States and with other partners to support their mediation aimed at resolving the political crisis”, Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Schäfer stated.