Amb. Jean-Jacques de Dardel, PhD, MEconSc, is a former Swiss diplomat, founder of the Centre for International Security Policy of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, Director General for Europe and Central Asia, Ambassador to Belgium, NATO, France and China, among other postings. President and member of various boards, he lectures at the University of Zurich and is a co-founder of the International Institute for Diplomacy, Geneva. He is the author of more than a dozen books and numerous articles on foreign policy, history and the arts.