Ambassador Elke Merks-Schaapveld graduated in Contemporary History from the University of Leiden (1996), the Diplomatic Academy of the MFA (2003) and from the Ecole Nationale d’ Administration (2009) in Strasburg (Suma Cum Laude). She has been consultant at KPMG for several years, followed by numerous positions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Netherlands: Policy officer on nuclear and non-proliferation affairs, First Secretary at the Embassy in Washington, First Secretary in Paris, Head of Cluster Security Council in The Hague, Chef cabinet EU Special Representative for the Sahel in Brussels, Head Political Dept/ Political Counsellor in Ankara. From the summer of 2020 she is Ambassador to Cyprus. Mrs. Merks-Schaapveld speaks several languages: Dutch (mother tongue), Fluent in French and English, Good proficiency in Portuguese and German, Basic knowledge of Turkish.