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Eelco van Kleffens | |
|---|---|
 Van Kleffens in 1945 | |
| Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to theECSC | |
| In office 1 May 1958 – 10 December 1967 | |
| Preceded by | Unknown |
| Succeeded by | Unknown |
| Permanent Representative of the Netherlands toNATO and theOECD | |
| In office 1 December 1956 – 1 May 1958 | |
| Preceded by | Unknown |
| Succeeded by | Unknown |
| President of the United Nations General Assembly | |
| In office 1 January 1954 – 31 December 1954 | |
| Preceded by | Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit |
| Succeeded by | José Maza Fernández |
| Ambassador of theNetherlands toPortugal | |
| In office 1 January 1950 – 1 May 1958 | |
| Preceded by | Unknown |
| Succeeded by | Unknown |
| Ambassador of theNetherlands to theUnited States | |
| In office 1 July 1947 – 1 December 1956 | |
| Preceded by | Unknown |
| Succeeded by | Unknown |
| Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to theUnited Nations | |
| In office 17 January 1946 – 1 December 1956 | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Unknown |
| Minister for United Nations Affairs | |
| In office 1 March 1946 – 1 July 1947 | |
| Prime Minister | Willem Schermerhorn (1946) Louis Beel (1946–1947) |
| Preceded by | Herman van Roijen |
| Succeeded by | Joseph Luns (1952) |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 10 August 1939 – 1 March 1946 | |
| Prime Minister | See list
|
| Preceded by | Jacob Adriaan Patijn |
| Succeeded by | Herman van Roijen |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Eelco Nicolaas van Kleffens (1894-11-17)17 November 1894 Heerenveen, Netherlands |
| Died | 17 June 1983(1983-06-17) (aged 88) Almoçageme, Portugal |
| Spouse | |
| Alma mater | Leiden University (Bachelor of Laws,Master of Laws) Erasmus University Rotterdam (Bachelor of Economics) |
| Occupation | Politician ·Diplomat ·Civil servant ·Jurist |
Eelco Nicolaas van Kleffens (17 November 1894 – 17 June 1983) was a Dutch politician and diplomat.
Eelco van Kleffens descended from an oldFrisian family of public servants. He was the son of Henricus Cato and Jeannette Frésine (Veenhoven) van Kleffens. His younger brotherAdrianus van Kleffens would later become a judge at theEuropean Court of Justice. He married Margaret Helen Horstmann on 4 April 1935.
After receiving aDoctor of Laws degree fromLeiden University, van Kleffens worked in the Secretariat of theLeague of Nations. He became secretary to the Directorate of Royal Dutch Petroleum Co. in 1920. He was appointed Assistant Director of the Legal Section of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1922 and of the Diplomatic Section in 1927, becoming Director of the latter in 1929. In the early 1930s he was also Secretary-General ofThe Hague Academy of International Law.
Van Kleffens was appointed theMinister of Foreign Affairs in 1939, weeks beforeWorld War II began, and was part of theDutch government in exile over that period. During the war he penned an account of the German invasion namedJuggernaut over Holland which was circulated within the occupied territory, and he was also one of the original signatories of theBenelux union.
Van Kleffens held the position of foreign minister until theSchermerhorn–Drees cabinet of 1946. Following his resignation from the ministerial position (but not from the cabinet) van Kleffens became the Netherlands' representative on theUnited Nations Security Council, and in 1947 was appointed the ambassador to the United States. In 1950 he became the ambassador toPortugal, and was bestowed the title ofMinister of State, a prestigious honour.
In 1954 van Kleffens was appointed to the position ofPresident of the United Nations General Assembly for that body'sninth session.
Van Kleffens was the Dutch representative atNATO and theOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development from 1956 to 1958, and at theEuropean Coal and Steel Community from 1958 until 1967, after which Van Kleffens retired toPortugal, where he died on 17 June 1983.
| Honours | ||||
| Ribbon bar | Honour | Country | Date | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Grand Officer of theLegion of Honour | France | 12 February 1948 | |
 | Knight Grand Cross of theOrder of Orange-Nassau | Netherlands | 30 April 1949 | Elevated from Grand Officer (1 March 1946) |
 | Grand Cross of theOrder of Merit | Portugal | 1 October 1954 | |
 | Commander of theOrder of the Netherlands Lion | Netherlands | 1 May 1958 | Elevated from Knight (15 July 1931) |
| Honorific Titles | ||||
| Ribbon bar | Honour | Country | Date | Comment |
 | Minister of State | Netherlands | 4 July 1950 | Style ofExcellency |
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Minister of Foreign Affairs 1939–1946 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister for United Nations Affairs 1946–1947 | Succeeded by Joseph Luns (1952) |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Office established | Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to theUnited Nations 1946–1956 | Unknown |
| Unknown | Ambassador of theNetherlands to theUnited States 1947–1956 | Unknown |
| Unknown | Ambassador of theNetherlands toPortugal 1950–1958 | Unknown |
| Preceded by | President of the United Nations General Assembly 1954 | Succeeded by |
| Unknown | Permanent Representative of the Netherlands toNATO and theOECD 1956–1958 | Unknown |
| Unknown | Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to theECSC 1958–1967 | Unknown |
| 1940s | |
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| 1950s | |
| 1960s | |
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