Jean-Charles Ellermann-Kingombe

Jean-Charles Ellermann-Kingombe (born 28 December 1970) is a Danish diplomat and civil servant. He is the current NATO Assistant Secretary General for Cyber Defence and Digital Transformation as well as NATO Special Coordinator for Hybrid Threats, having previously served as Permanent Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs at the Danish Prime Minister's Office between 2019 and 2024, under Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, and briefly Lars Løkke Rasmussen.

Ellermann-Kingombe is a career diplomat with a long service at the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He has served as Ambassador of Denmark to Afghanistan (2016–2017), and before that as Head of the Executive Secretariat, the chief of staff to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (2013–2016). He was the press advisor to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Minister of European Affairs (2010–2013), under Lene Espersen and later Villy Søvndal, and has also served as deputy head of various departments in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. From 2001 to 2007, he was stationed in Brussels, serving firstly as press secretary during the Danish EU presidency in 2002, and afterwards as spokesperson and cabinet member for the Danish EU Commissioners Poul Nielson (Development and Humanitarian Aid) and subsequently Mariann Fischer Boel (Agriculture).

In 2024, he was appointed NATO Assistant Secretary General, overseeing the Alliance’s policies on cyber defence and threats, digital transformation, and hybrid warfare. He grew up in Denmark with a Danish mother, Anette Larsen, and his father, Jean Onapota Kingombe, from the former Zaire - now the Democratic Republic of Congo. He attended French school as a child and is sometimes described as a "Francophone".

In 1996, Ellermann-Kingombe obtained a Master of Science in International Business from Copenhagen Business School. In 1995, during his master's programme, he studied International Marketing and Finance at HEC Paris, France.

Career

Early career After his studies in Paris, Ellermann-Kingombe was subsequently given an internship in Brussels, under the cabinet of the then EU Commissioner for the Environment, Ritt Bjerregaard. Here, the head of cabinet, Laurs Nørlund, advised Ellermann-Kingombe to choose the Danish Foreign Service, as he had otherwise envisioned a career in the private sector. Following the 2004 European elections, Nielsen was replaced as the Danish Commissioner, and Mariann Fischer Boel was selected. Ellermann-Kingombe continued to serve as a member of her cabinet, and she became EU Commissioner for Agriculture. During his time as ambassador, Danish military forces were present in Afghanistan as part of the NATO Resolute Support Mission, and Ellermann-Kingombe visited and inspected the forces on several occasions.

He was recalled from Kabul in 2017, and replaced by Jakob Brix Tange. After his tenure in Afghanistan, Ellermann-Kingombe had a brief professional interlude and spent a few years as a senior project manager at the consultancy Struensee & co.

As the Prime Minister's chief diplomatic and security advisor, Ellermann-Kingombe served a role similar to that of the National Security Advisor in the United States. He also functioned as the political Sherpa of Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, during international summits and events.

In his role as Permanent Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Ellermann-Kingombe was described as Frederiksen's ‘top diplomat’ and ‘closest advisor’. He maintained regular dialogue with National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and with European security policy actors. He was present at the closed meeting held at the White House during Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen's meeting with President Joe Biden in the spring of 2023.

In 2022, he was mentioned as one of the top candidates to replace Lars Lose, as Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

NATO Assistant Secretary General Ellermann-Kingombe in 2024, speaking at the NATO Cyber Defence Conference held at Lancaster House, London. In the 2024 ambassadorial reshuffle, Ellermann-Kingombe was originally appointed the Ambassador of Denmark to France, replacing Michael Starbæk Christensen. He was to assume this position on 15 August 2024, and the appointment of Ellermann-Kingombe was seen as a move responding to the growing strategic importance of Paris in European politics post-Brexit, where his diplomatic background and close ties to President Macron's political circle were perceived by observers as highlighting Denmark's enhanced focus on Franco-Danish relations.

However, in the start of August 2024, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Ellermann-Kingombe has instead been appointed Assistant Secretary General for Innovation, Hybrid and Cyber (IHC) of NATO, replacing David van Weel.

Ahead of the 2025 The Hague NATO summit, Ellermann-Kingombe unveiled a "technology acceleration plan" that raises allied defence spending targets to 3.5% of GDP, with an extra 1.5% for cyber-resilience. The initiatives are backed by NATO’s €1 billion Innovation Fund and the 180-site DIANA accelerator network. He also warned that the Alliance risked "falling behind" China in 37 of 42 critical technologies, and pointed to Russia’s use of low-cost drones and under-sea-cable sabotage as evidence of the urgency for rapid innovation.

Personal life He is married to Henriette Ellermann-Kingombe, lady-in-waiting and private secretary to Queen Mary of Denmark.

Honours

National

70x70px Knight 1st Class of the Order of the Dannebrog (2022).