Until 1983 Waldner worked in the private sector. Only in 1984 did she enter the diplomatic service. One of her most influential positions was Chef de protocole for Secretary GeneralBoutros-Ghali at the UN in New York City.
In late July 2004 Ferrero-Waldner was nominated the successor of Franz Fischler as Austria's European Commissioner. She took office on 22 November. Her portfolio was Foreign Affairs and European Neighbourhood Policy.
As the EU's External Affairs Commissioner,Ferrero-Waldner is credited with being the key diplomat in the 24 July 2007 release of five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor imprisoned by Libya. They had been held more than 8 years on charges of purposefully infecting children with HIV,and have continued to profess their innocence. The commissioner made many trips to Libya and met with the prisoners regularly. She also worked to improve conditions for children infected with HIV/Aids.
Life after politics
In September 2009 Ferrero-Waldner ran for the post of UNESCO Director-General but lost to the Bulgarian candidate Irina Bokova. Since leaving politics,she has held a variety of paid and unpaid positions,including the following:
Munich Re,member of the supervisory board (2010–2021)[1]
In February 2020,Ferrero-Waldner joined around fifty former European prime ministers and foreign ministers in signing an open letter published by British newspaper The Guardian to condemn U.S. presidentDonald Trump's Middle East peace plan,saying it would create an apartheid-like situation in occupied Palestinian territory.[5]
Personal life
From 1974 until 1983 Waldner was married to Wolfgang Sterr,a Bavarian high school teacher. However,their marriage ended in divorce. In 1993 Waldner married Francisco Ferrero Campos,a lecturer in Spanish and Latin American literature at the University of Vienna.
After her previous marriage had finally been annulled Ferrero-Waldner married her husband again in church in December 2003. The couple does not have any children.
1 = President. 2 = Vice President. 3 = Served from 1 January 2007. 4 = Vassiliou replaced Kyprianou on 3 March 2008. 5 = Tajani replaced Frattini on 18 June 2008. 6 = Ashton replaced Mandelson on 3 October 2008. 7 = Šemeta replaced Grybauskaitė on 1 July 2009. 8 = Samecki replaced Hübner on 4 July 2009. 9 = De Gucht replaced Michel on 17 July 2009. 10 = Šefčovič replaced Figeľ on 1 October 2009.
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