13 Facts About Jean Asselborn

Jean Asselborn served as Deputy Prime Minister from 2004 to 2013, under Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker.

Jean Asselborn was born on 27 April 1949 in Steinfort.

In 1968, Jean Asselborn began working for the Luxembourg City administration as a civil servant, before returning to Steinfort in 1969, where he was employed as a civil servant for the local administration.

Jean Asselborn resumed his secondary studies in 1976, obtaining a diplome de fin d'etudes secondaires from the Athenee de Luxembourg that same year.

Jean Asselborn became Mayor of Steinfort in 1982 and served in that position until 2004.

Jean Asselborn is currently the longest-serving minister among the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the European Union.

In September 2010 Jean Asselborn declined a request of the Alternative Democratic Reform Party to make Luxembourgish an official language of the European Union citing financial reasons and that German and French being already official languages would be sufficient for the needs of Luxembourg.

In early September 2016, Jean Asselborn called for Hungary to be suspended or expelled from the European Union over its "massive violation" of EU fundamental values, citing concerns over its treatment of refugees during the European refugee crisis, independence of the judiciary and freedom of the press.

In March 2018, Jean Asselborn condemned the Turkish invasion of northern Syria aimed at ousting US-backed Syrian Kurds from the enclave of Afrin.

Jean Asselborn said about Turkey's conduct that "this has nothing to do with self-defence any more", adding that Turkey would have to cease and desist from attacking the YPG and explain its conduct in Afrin to the NATO council.

Jean Asselborn doubted that the peace agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates would bring stability to the region, stating there will be no stability without a two-state solution, and said the UAE had let the Palestinians down with the agreement.

In September 2023, Jean Asselborn condemned Azerbaijan's military operation in Nagorno-Karabakh.

In December 2010, Jean Asselborn was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.