Annan moves to appoint new envoy to Afghanistan

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has moved to appoint Jean Arnault of France as his Special Representative for Afghanistan.

Mr. Arnault has served as the Acting Special Representative in Afghanistan since Lakhdar Brahimi stepped down from the post at the start of last month. He has also been Deputy Special Representative for the country, with responsibility for political affairs, since March 2002.

Mr. Annan wrote a letter to the Security Council President on Friday informing him of his intention to appoint Mr. Arnault. The Council has until tomorrow to respond to the letter.

Mr. Arnault previously served in Kabul in 1990, as a Senior Political Affairs Officer for the UN and the head of the Kabul headquarters of the then-Office of the Secretary-General in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The experienced French diplomat has held a range of international posts, including a stint as the Secretary-General's Special Representative for Guatemala from 1997 to 2000.