OSCE Mission to Serbia

Ambassador Hans Ola Urstad

Hans Ola Urstad of Norway took up his position as Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia and Montenegro on 7 February 2006. Following the declaration of independence by Montenegro on 3 June 2006 and the subsequent OSCE Permanent Council decision, he became Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia on 29 June 2006.

Born in Flekkefjord, Ambassador Urstad holds a degree from Oslo University in Psychology, English and Nordic Studies (1976) and a degree in Political Science and International Relations (1980).

After joining the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1980, Ambassador Urstad served in the Norwegian Embassy in Warsaw and in the Norwegian Delegation to NATO in Brussels. In 1988 he returned to Norway, and in 1989 became Head of Division for Personnel at the Ministry. From 1991-1995, he was Head of the International Department of the Norwegian Parliament and Chief of Staff to the Foreign Affairs Committee.

In 1995, Ambassador Urstad became Consul General in San Francisco, covering the 12 Western States of the USA. After this, he was Special Adviser on Stability Pact issues in the Ministry's European Department.

More recently, Mr. Urstad became Ambassador of Norway in Belgrade in 2001. The Norwegian Embassy has served as the contact point between NATO and the host country since September 2004.

Apart from the Scandinavian languages, he is fluent in English, and has language skills in German and French.