Marija Pejčinović Burić

Marija Pejčinović Burić (; born 9 April 1963) is a Croatian politician of the centre-right Croatian Democratic Union party who served as Minister of Foreign and European Affairs and First Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia from 2017 to 2019. She was the third woman to hold the post of foreign minister, following Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović and Vesna Pusić. Pejčinović Burić previously served as a Member of Parliament during its Sixth Assembly (2008–2011), representing the 6th electoral district.

On 26 June 2019, she was elected as the 14th Secretary General of the Council of Europe, defeating Belgium's foreign minister Didier Reynders by 159 votes to 105. Pejčinović Burić's term began on 18 September 2019 and concluded on 18 September 2024, when she was succeeded by former Swiss President and Interior Minister, Alain Berset.

Education and early career Pejčinović Burić graduated in Economics from the University of Zagreb in 1985.

After graduating, Pejčinović Burić worked as a trade expert associate for Končar Inženjering in Zagreb between 1988 and 1991. In 1991, she was appointed Secretary General of the Europe House Zagreb by her boyfriend Ljubomir Čučić (at a time secretary general of the EuropeanMovement Croatia), and later Deputy Secretary General of the European Movement Croatia. In 1994, she obtained a Master of Science in European Studies from the College of Europe

In 2019, Pejčinović Burić announced her candidacy to succeed Thorbjørn Jagland as Secretary General of the Council of Europe.

Secretary General of the Council of Europe

On 26 June 2019, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe voted to select the organization's 14th Secretary General, with the candidates being foreign minister Pejčinović Burić and her Belgian counterpart Didier Reynders. Pejčinović Burić went on to defeat Reynders by 159 votes to 105. She was formally sworn in on 18 September 2019.

Burić was present together with the President of Moldova Maia Sandu during the signing of the Council of Europe Action Plan for the Republic of Moldova 2021–2024 on 19 April 2021 at Strasbourg, France. She discussed with Sandu issues on human rights, politics and the COVID-19 pandemic in the country, with Burić expressing her support for Sandu's anti-corruption efforts.

Other activities Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), Member of the Board of Directors (since 2016)