Federal Minister of European & International Affairs of Austria
On 29 January 2020 Alexander Schallenberg was appointed Federal Minister for European and International Affairs of the Republic of Austria. Already since 3 June 2019 he had been appointed as Federal Minister for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs.
Alexander Schallenberg was born on 20 June 1969 in Bern as the son of an Austrian diplomat. From 1989 – 1994 he studied the law at the University of Vienna and at the Université Panthéon-Assas (Paris II). He also holds a degree in European law from the College of Europe in Bruges.
Alexander Schallenberg joined the diplomatic service of the Republic of Austria in 1997. He completed his training at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs primarily in the Section for EU Affairs. Alexander Schallenberg’s first posting abroad was as the EU legal advisor to the Permanent Representation of Austria to the European Union in Brussels.
In December 2005 Alexander Schallenberg returned to Vienna, where he served as spokesperson to Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik as well as to her successor Michael Spindelegger. He held further functions in the diplomatic service of the Republic of Austria including head of the Strategic Foreign Policy Planning Unit and head of the EU Affairs Section. Most recently, he served as head of the Coordination Section at the Federal Chancellery.