Alyaksandr Lukashenka on August 20 appointed Uladzimir Makey (Vladimir Makei), formerly head of the Presidential Administration, to serve as foreign minister.
According to the presidential press office, the former foreign minister, Syarhey Martynaw, was relieved of the position because of his "transfer to another job."
Uladzimir Makey, who was appointed head of the Presidential Administration on July 15, 2008, was born in the Hrodna region on August 5, 1958. In 1980, he graduated from the Minsk State Teachers’ Training Institute of Foreign Languages (currently Minsk Linguistic University). He served with the USSR Armed Forces between 1980 and 1992. He received training at the Diplomacy Academy in Vienna in 1992-93. He speaks English and German and holds the military rank of colonel in the reserve.
Mr. Makey served at the foreign ministry from 1993 through 2000, being Belarus’ representative to the Council of Europe and counselor at the Belarusian embassy in France between 1996 and 1999, and head of the ministry’s Pan-European Cooperation Department in 1999 and 2000.
In March 2000, he was appointed presidential aide and served in the position until his appointment as head of the Presidential Administration.
Mr. Martynaw had served as foreign minister since March 2003.
