Nikolay Mladenov, Bulgaria's new foreign minister
(SOFIA) - New Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenov, who switched portfolios Wednesday from defence minister, is the youngest member of the cabinet of Prime Minister Boyko Borisov.
The 37-year-old holds a Masters degree in War Studies from King's College in London and a Masters in International Relations from the University for National and World Economy in Sofia.
He was a member of the European Parliament in the European People's Party between 2007 and 2009 and served on the parliament's foreign affairs and internal market committees.
He was also chair of the delegation for relations with Iraq and a member of the delegations for Afghanistan and Israel.
When Borisov and his right-wing administration took office last July, Mladenov was appointed defence minister.
His transfer to the foreign ministry was proposed by Borisov last week following the resignation of embattled foreign minister Rumiana Jeleva, after her failure to win approval as European aid commissioner.
Before entering politics, Mladenov worked for the Open Society Institute and the World Bank and was founder and head of the European Institute in Sofia between 1999 and 2001.
Elected at the Bulgarian parliament in 2001 from the right-wing Union of Democratic Forces (UDF), he was deputy chair of its European integration committee.
Mladenov was elected UDF vice president in 2004 but quit after the party's failure at the general vote in 2005.
The son of a Bulgarian diplomat, he is fluent in English, French and Russian.
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