Nicolas Masson is a Swiss diplomat with 20+ years (mostly field) experience in diplomacy, international cooperation, peace mediation and humanitarian affairs. His main geographical area of expertise is the Middle East. Between 2003 and 2020 he served in Kuwait, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, the occupied Palestinian territory, Libya and Tunisia first as an ICRC Delegate (2003-2007), a senior Programme Manager and Head of Office at DCAF (2008-2014), as well as in different positions with the United Nations as a Senior Adviser to the Special Envoy for Syria and the FDFA (2014-2020). He recently served during Switzerland’s mandate in the UN Security Council (2023-2024) in New York with a focus on Middle East affairs. During this tenure he also led Switzerland’s active support for the Secretary General’s Common Pledge for women’s participation in peace processes. Nicolas Masson is currently co-heading the Mediation & Dialogue section of the Peace and Human Rights Division (PHRD) at the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) in Bern. He speaks Arabic and five other languages fluently, is married and has two daughters.
