H. E. Mr. Miroslav Lajčák of Slovakia serves as the President of the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly, which spans from September 2017 to September 2018. Mr. Lajčák is also serving his fourth term as the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic.

He has dedicated his professional life to diplomatic service, representing both the Slovak Republic and the international community. He joined the foreign service in 1988 and has held various diplomatic positions since, including as Slovak Ambassador to Japan, Executive Assistant to the UN Secretary-General´s Special Envoy for the Balkans and later as the Slovak Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and to Albania.

A key figure in the mediation of the post-conflict crises in the Western Balkans, Mr. Lajčák negotiated, organized and supervised the referendum on the independence of Montenegro in 2006 on behalf of the European Union.

From 2007 to 2009, Mr. Lajčák served as High Representative of the International Community and European Union Special Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

From 2009 to July 2010, Mr. Lajčák served his first term as Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic.

From 2010 to 2012, Mr. Lajčák helped shape the newly formed diplomatic service of the European Union, the European External Action Service, as its Managing Director for Europe and Central Asia.

From April 2012 to March 2016, Mr. Lajčák served as Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of his country. He was reappointed for his third and fourth term as the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic in 2016 and 2018 respectively.

Mr. Lajčák is a graduate of the Moscow State Institute for International Relations and has a law degree from the Comenius University in Bratislava.

He has received several state honors, including the Order of the Yugoslav Star, 1st Class, in 2005; the Order of Honor of the Republic of Moldova in 2014; and the Order of the Montenegrin Great Star in 2016.

He is married and has two daughters.