Francisco Seixas da Costa

Portuguese diplomat

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Francisco Seixas da Costa

Francisco Seixas da Costa, GCC, CMG, (Vila Real, 1948) is a retired Portuguese diplomat. He was also member of two Portuguese governments. He is now strategic consultant, non-executive director in private sector companies and media commentator on international affairs.

## Main official functions

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* 1975 - 2013 - Career diplomat, Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
* 1979 - 1982 - Embassy of Portugal in Oslo, Norway;
* 1982 - 1986 - Embassy of Portugal in Luanda, Angola;
* 1986 - 1987 - Head of Division, European Affairs Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lisbon;
* 1987 - 1990 - Adviser to the Secretary of State for Development Co-operation, Lisbon;
* 1990 - 1994 - Minister Counsellor, Embassy of Portugal in London, UK;
* 1994 - 1995 - Deputy Director-General for European Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Lisbon;
* 1995 - 2001 - Secretary of State for European Affairs, Lisbon;
* 2001 - 2002 - Permanent Representative to the United Nations, New York;
* 2002 - 2004 - Permanent Representative to the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Vienna;
* 2004 - 2008 - Ambassador to Brazil.
* 2009 - 2013 - Ambassador to France.
* 2010 - 2013 - Also ambassador to Monaco.
* 2012 - 2013 - Also Permanent Representative to UNESCO (United Nations Organisation for Education, Science and Culture)

## Other official functions

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* 1987 - 1989 - Portuguese chief negotiator of Lomé IV convention
* 1990 - 1993 - Deputy permanent representative to the Western European Union (WEU)
* 1995 - 2001 - Head of the Portuguese delegations to ministerial meetings of the Council of Europe (CoE), the Organisation for Economic and Development Co-Operation (OECD) and World Trade Organisation (WTO)
* 1995 - 1997 - Portuguese chief negotiator of the EU Amsterdam treaty
* 1997 - President of the Committee of ministers of the Schengen Agreement
* 2000 - President of the Council of ministers of the EU Internal Market
* 2000 - Portuguese chief negotiator of the EU Nice treaty
* 2001 - Vice-president of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
* 2001 - 2002 - Chairman of the Second Committee (Economic and Financial affairs) of the 56th UN General Assembly
* 2001 - 2002 - Member of the Consultative Board of the United Nations Fund for International Partnerships
* 2002 - Vice-president elected of the 57th UN General Assembly
* 2002 - President of the Permanent Council of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europa (OSCE)
* 2013 - 2014 - Executive Director of the North-South Centre of the Council of Europe

## Other functions

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* 2009 - 2013 - President of the General Council of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro University (UTAD)
* 2010 - 2018 - Member of the Consultative Council of the School of Economics, University of Coimbra
* 2011 - 2013 - Member of the General Council of Guimarães - European Capital of Culture 2012
* 2013 - 2025 - Member of the Board of Directors, Jerónimo Martins, Lisbon
* 2013 - 2018 - Member of the Consultative Council, Universidade Nova de Lisboa
* 2013 - 2018 - Member of the Consultative Council, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation
* 2014 - 2018 - Invited professor, Universidade Autónoma de Lisboa
* 2015 - 2018 - Invited professor, Universidade Europeia, Lisbon
* 2016 - 2021 - Member of the Board of Directors of EDP Renewables, Lisboa
* 2018 - 2021 - Member of the Independent General Council, Radio e Televisão de Portugal S. A., Lisbon
* 2021 - 2024 - CNN Portugal commentator in international affairs

## Current functions

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* Since 2018 - Member of the Board of Directors, Mota-Engil, Lisbon
* Since 2018 - Chairman of the Advisory Council, Kearney Portugal, Lisbon
* Since 2020 - Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Tabaqueira, Philipp Morris Portugal, Lisbon
* Since 2016 - Member of the Advisory Council, Chancery for Civil Merit Orders, Presidency of Republic, Lisbon
* Since 2019 - Chairman of the "Club of Lisbon - Global Challenges", Lisbon
* Since 2021 - Commentator in international affairs, "A Arte da Guerra", Jornal Económico, Lisboa

## Bibliography

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* "Diplomacia Europeia - Instituições, Alargamento e o Futuro da União" ("European Diplomacy - the institutions, the enlargement and the future of the Union"), Lisbon, 2002;
* "Uma Segunda Opinião - Notas de Política Externa e Diplomacia" ("A Second Opinion - Notes on External Policy and Diplomacy"), Lisbon, 2006;
* "As Vésperas e a Alvorada de Abril" ("The vespers and the April dawn"), Brasília, 2007;
* "Tanto Mar? - Portugal, o Brasil e a Europa" ("So much sea? - Portugal, Brazil and Europe"), Brasília, 2008.
* "Apontamentos" ("Notes"), Lisbon, 2008.
* “A Cidade Imaginária” ("Imaginary City"), Vila Real, 2021.
* "Antes que me esqueça - a diplomacia e a vida  ("Before I forget - Diplomacy and Life"), Lisbon, 2023.

## References

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Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF
* WorldCat

National|

* Germany
* United States
* Spain
* Portugal

Other|

* IdRef
* Yale LUX