Sigrid Kaag

Sigrid Agnes Maria Kaag (Dutch: [ˈsiɣrɪt ˈɑxnɛs maːˈrijaː ˈkaːx]; born 2 November 1961) is a Dutch politician, diplomat and former party leader. She served as First Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands and Minister of Finance, becoming the first woman to hold the finance portfolio. Over a diplomatic career spanning more than two decades, Kaag has held a succession of senior United Nations posts at the Under-Secretary-General level, engaged in mediation and negotiation on some of the world's most complex security and humanitarian crises. These include Special Coordinator a.i. for the Middle East Peace Process, Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza, Special Coordinator for Lebanon, and head of the OPCW-UN Joint Mission in Syria, which oversaw the elimination of Syria's declared chemical weapons programme. Following the adoption of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803, she was announced as an independent member of the Gaza Executive Board. She is also an Associate Professor of international negotiation and governance at Sciences Po's Paris School of International Affairs. Kaag entered Dutch politics in 2017 as Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation in the third Rutte cabinet on behalf of D66. She ascended to party leadership ahead of the 2021 general election and served concurrently as Minister of Foreign Affairs. When the fourth Rutte cabinet was formed in January 2022, Kaag became First Deputy Prime Minister and the first woman to serve as the Netherlands’ finance minister. Before entering national politics, Kaag built a diplomatic career at the United Nations spanning more than two decades. She served as Special Coordinator for Lebanon and later as head of the OPCW-UN Joint Mission in Syria, which oversaw the destruction of Syria's declared chemical weapons stockpile. Following her time in government, she returned to the UN, serving as Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza...